Take Control of Cloud Costs on Microsoft Azure
- Traditional IT budgeting and procurement processes don't work for public cloud services.
- The self-service nature of the cloud means that often the people provisioning cloud resources aren't accountable for the cost of those resources.
- Without centralized control or oversight, organizations can quickly end up with massive Azure bills that exceed their IT salary cost.
Our Advice
Critical Insight
- Most engineers care more about speed of feature delivery and reliability of the system than they do about cost.
- Often there are no consequences for overarchitecting or overspending on Azure.
- Many organizations lack sufficient visibility into their Azure spend, making it impossible to establish accountability and controls.
Impact and Result
- Define roles and responsibilities.
- Establish visibility.
- Develop processes, procedures, and policies.
Take Control of Cloud Costs on Microsoft Azure Research & Tools
Start here – read the Executive Brief
Read our concise Executive Brief to find out why you should take control of cloud costs, review Info-Tech’s methodology, and understand the four ways we can support you in completing this project.Besides the small introduction, subscribers and consulting clients within this management domain have access to:
- Take Control of Cloud Costs on Microsoft Azure – Phases 1-4
1. Build a cost accountability framework
Assess your current state, define your cost allocation model, and define roles and responsibilities.
- Cloud Cost Management Worksheet
- Cloud Cost Management Capability Assessment
- Cloud Cost Management Policy
- Cloud Cost Glossary of Terms
2. Establish visibility
Define dashboards and reports, and document account structure and tagging requirements.
- Service Cost Cheat Sheet for Azure
3. Define processes and procedures
Establish governance for tagging and cost control, define process for right-sizing, and define process for purchasing commitment discounts.
- Right-Sizing Workflow (Visio)
- Right-Sizing Workflow (PDF)
- Commitment Purchasing Workflow (Visio)
- Commitment Purchasing Workflow (PDF)
4. Build an implementation plan
Document process interactions, establish program KPIs, and build implementation roadmap and communication plan.
- Cloud Cost Management Task List
Workshop: Take Control of Cloud Costs on Microsoft Azure
Workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.
1 Build a Cost Accountability Framework
The Purpose
Establish clear lines of accountability and document roles & responsibilities to effectively manage cloud costs.
Key Benefits Achieved
Understanding of key areas to focus on to improve cloud cost management capabilities.
Activities
1.1 Assess current state
1.2 Determine cloud cost model
1.3 Define roles & responsibilities
Outputs
Cloud cost management capability assessment
Cloud cost model
Roles & responsibilities
2 Establish Visibility
The Purpose
Establish visibility into cloud costs and drivers of those costs.
Key Benefits Achieved
Better understanding of what is driving costs and how to keep them in check.
Activities
2.1 Develop architectural patterns
2.2 Define dashboards and reports
2.3 Define account structure
2.4 Document tagging requirements
Outputs
Architectural patterns; service cost cheat sheet
Dashboards and reports
Account structure
Tagging scheme
3 Define Processes & Procedures
The Purpose
Develop processes, procedures, and policies to control cloud costs.
Key Benefits Achieved
Improved capability of reducing costs.
Documented processes & procedures for continuous improvement.
Activities
3.1 Establish governance for tagging
3.2 Establish governance for costs
3.3 Define right-sizing process
3.4 Define purchasing process
3.5 Define notification and alerts
Outputs
Tagging policy
Cost control policy
Right-sizing process
Commitment purchasing process
Notifications and alerts
4 Build an Implementation Plan
The Purpose
Document next steps to implement & improve cloud cost management program.
Key Benefits Achieved
Concrete roadmap to stand up and/or improve the cloud cost management program.
Activities
4.1 Document process interaction changes
4.2 Define cloud cost program KPIs
4.3 Build implementation roadmap
4.4 Build communication plan
Outputs
Changes to process interactions
Cloud cost program KPIs
Implementation roadmap
Communication plan