Tech Journal A Formula for Success in Cloud Economics and Management
By Elliott Baretz / 15 Jun 2019 / Topics: Cloud
By Elliott Baretz / 15 Jun 2019 / Topics: Cloud
For many organizations, the most challenging element of the cloud has nothing to do with the technology it delivers. According to Forbes, 30 percent of all cloud spending is wasted -- think forgotten instances or simply bad choices in subscription. That’s about $50B in wasted consumption.
To remedy this challenge, today’s market leaders understand that it is critical to partner with a cloud Managed Service Provider (MSP) that can deliver the right people, process and technologies in order to ensure optimized cloud consumption. The expression "people, process and technology" may be well worn, but it is certainly a proven formula for success within the IT marketplace. Let’s take a closer look.
First, let’s be clear about one thing. Largely speaking, internal technical teams are as talented, intelligent and committed as their outside counter-parts. The difference between them is simply a matter of focus. The practical reality of running an internal IT organization is that it is economically unreasonable to think your team can possess the expertise to manage all of the technologies necessary to run the business it supports. Moreover, individuals with strong competencies in high demand technologies become difficult to find and afford. According to CIO Magazine, cloud architects and cloud security engineers are expected to be among the most sought-after candidates in 2019.
For many organizations, the costs associated with staffing these resources internally becomes prohibitive. Working with a cloud MSP offers an efficient alternative to gaining access to the right people at the right time.
Great service organizations are not created in a day. High performing teams (internal and external) that deliver excellence with consistency do so because of experience. In other words, they have already made the critical mistakes, learned the best path to success and developed the cultures and operational structures to realize the right outcomes.
The cloud MSP is no different. Having clarity on when and how to manage critical moments is defined by experience. An example can be found in the management of rogue consumption. Identifying and controlling rogue consumption represents a primary charter for today’s cloud MSP. In basic terms, rogue consumption occurs when internal or external actors initiate cloud consumption beyond levels intended by the account owner. Unchecked, these instances can represent significant financial liability. In fact, according to RightScale, the number one challenge facing cloud users is optimizing cost.
Of course, having the technology to defend against such moments is essential, but technology is only effective if focused in the right direction. In the case of rogue consumption, consider the possibilities. While a monitoring platform may be able to identify and control instances of unexpected consumption, what happens if the unexpected consumption is actually desired? Or consider a situation when one instance (or workload) exceeds expected consumption levels; does that mean that all account instances should be frozen? In the end, there is no single or simple answer to these questions. Only through clear communication, protocols and process can an MSP truly manage the customer’s expectations.
It’s exciting times in the world of cloud monitoring and management. Hundreds of well-funded organizations are racing to establish a market leadership position within the cloud monitoring and management platform sector.
In truth, it is a complex challenge for these companies to architect and build enterprise-ready platforms that can track multitudes of instances for multi-tenant / multi-account portfolios, within different public clouds (Azure, AWS, Google) in real or near-real time. Some are closer than others, and it’s the nature of our industry that money will support this race until there is a clear champion.
The challenge for those not specializing in the world of cloud support is that it becomes difficult to know which platform is going to win. Bad bets on the wrong technology can become very costly in terms of budget, performance and opportunity cost. In many cases, the smartest decision is to partner with an MSP and hold them accountable to performance. In the end, it is the core business of the MSP to understand what technology is best in class and what products provide superior outcomes in cloud monitoring and management.
At Insight, our commitment to excellence has set us apart. Today, we are ranked as one of the top MSPs in the world, and we are recognized by partners such as Microsoft as a leader in their cloud solution program. In truth, what is captured in this article is simply the tip of the iceberg; in each of these areas (people, process and technology), there are many facets and details that make up the entire story. If your organization is engaged in the cloud today (or plans to be in the future), it may make sense to spend some time with us to learn more.
National Director of Microsoft Business, Insight
Over the last twenty years, Elliott has had an accomplished career within the technology sector; particularly within the Microsoft ecosystem. As a sales and marketing executive, he’s led global, national and local teams with great success — leading to company and industry recognition such as the MC/Icon Award, the Communicator Award and the Business Marketing Association Tower Award.
