ENGAGEMENT
The Cloud organization of a large U.S.-based telecommunications provider faced significant challenges due to its limited visibility into public cloud workloads, usage and resource allocation. This lack of a robust cloud FinOps program led to inaccurate forecasting and considerable overspending. To address these issues, DayBlink Consulting was engaged to spearhead a FinOps initiative aimed at enhancing visibility, forecasting and cost control over cloud workloads. The project involved systematically gathering, cleaning, and combining usage and spend data from across the enterprise. By presenting this data in a comprehensive manner, DayBlink Consulting enabled better financial decision-making and FinOps oversight. The outcome was a notable reduction in public cloud costs, improved budget forecasts and an increased sense of accountability among cloud consumers regarding its usage and associated expenditures as part of a cloud spend show-back program
PROBLEM
The primary issue articulated was a significant lack of visibility into cloud usage data and the allocation of resources throughout the organization. This obscurity hindered the Cloud teams’ ability to accurately forecast future resource needs, which in turn led to budgeting difficulties and dissatisfaction among senior leaders. Without clear insights into resource consumption, there was a void in accountability for cloud spending, leading to ineffective cost management practices. The challenge was compounded by the absence of a unified view of data, making it difficult to track and control expenditures across different departments and applications.
SOLUTION
To tackle these challenges, DayBlink Consulting was tasked with leading a comprehensive effort to enhance the visibility of cloud usage and resource utilization with focus on the use of reserve instances vs. on-demand and auto-scaling instances This involved collecting and aggregating extensive cost data from various sources within the organization, followed by ongoing tracking and detailed reporting as part of cloud FinOps show-back program.. DayBlink Consulting’s solution centralized the data, providing a clear and cohesive view of cloud spend and resource usage. This integration illuminated immediate opportunities for cost reductions and facilitated ongoing monitoring and reporting. The enhanced visibility allowed for better tracking and forecasting of spending patterns across various applications and accounts, thereby improving the accuracy of budget planning and cost management.
RESULT
The implementation of DayBlink Consulting’s Public Cloud FinOps optimization solution significantly transformed the client’s approach to cloud cost management. With the newly achieved visibility and oversight, the client was able to make more informed decisions regarding cloud expenditures and identify further opportunities for cost reduction. The improved ability to forecast and manage costs allowed for more strategic planning and technology investment. Moreover, the enhanced transparency via the show-back program fostered a culture of accountability among the cloud-consuming teams. IT, business and finance departments collaboratively embraced a shared responsibility for managing cloud spend, leading to more disciplined and effective cost management practices. Overall, the solution not only addressed the immediate issues of overspending and poor forecasting but also established a framework for sustained cost control and strategic decision-making in cloud resource management.