Title

AWS re:Invent 2023 - CFM (FinOps) assessment: Building a roadmap for financial success (GDS104)

Summary

• The session focused on the importance of Cloud Financial Management (CFM) assessments for financial success in the cloud.
• The speaker emphasized that FinOps is a challenging space because it's neither purely technical nor purely financial, and getting engineers to take action is a top challenge.
• Centralized cloud activities lead to 38% more savings, and a formal partnership between finance and technology leads to 22% more savings, 32% more SLAs met, and 46% more accurate forecasts.
• The CFM assessment is a free tool designed to create awareness and help organizations focus on operational and change management aspects of FinOps.
• The assessment covers four pillars: identifying and reporting costs, optimizing costs, planning and forecasting, and operations.
• The process includes collecting inputs, visualizing areas of focus, providing AWS support, and offering a set of best practices and actions.
• The tool provides a heat map, scoring view, and radar view to help organizations understand their current state and track improvements over time.
• A polling feature is included to facilitate honest discussions and input from all team members during the assessment.
• The speaker encourages reaching out to AWS teams for assistance with the assessment and emphasizes the iterative nature of the process for continuous improvement.

Insights

• FinOps is a complex area that requires a blend of technical and financial expertise, and the CFM assessment tool is designed to address this by focusing on operational efficiency and change management.
• The data presented suggests that organizations with centralized cloud management and strong partnerships between finance and technology departments can achieve significant cost savings and operational benefits.
• The assessment tool is not just a technical audit but a strategic exercise that involves all relevant stakeholders, including finance, technology, and business teams.
• The polling feature in the assessment tool is an innovative approach to ensure that all voices are heard, especially in situations where hierarchical dynamics might otherwise influence the outcomes.
• The session highlights the importance of benchmarking and continuous improvement in FinOps practices, suggesting that organizations should regularly reassess their financial operations to stay efficient and competitive.
• The speaker's offer to assist with the assessment and the mention of partner enablement indicates AWS's commitment to supporting customers and partners in their FinOps journey.