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In previous articles, we’ve explored the Evolution of Managed Services in Hyperscale Cloud Environments. Now, we turn to insights from our Managed Service Provider (MSP) partners, who are pioneering innovative solutions for their clients. This is the first installment in a summer series of guest posts from our MSP partners, focusing on the AWS Cloud and its myriad benefits for businesses. Topics will include cloud automation, post-migration optimization, hybrid cloud management, managed security, continuous compliance, and how MSPs can serve as catalysts for innovation.

Let’s start with insights from Alex Johnson, Founder & EVP of Strategy and Development at Cloud Innovations (APN Premier Partner and MSP Partner), who emphasizes the importance of workload optimization and refactoring after migrating to AWS.

Four Essential Steps for Optimizing Your IT Resources, by Alex Johnson, Founder & EVP of Strategy and Development at Cloud Innovations

At Cloud Innovations, we have had the privilege of assisting numerous leading brands in strategizing, planning, and migrating their operations to the cloud, as well as providing ongoing support for their workloads. Through collaboration with top cloud experts, we’ve developed best practices and outlined four vital steps for optimizing IT resources.

Cloud optimization necessitates a blend of data science, cloud product expertise, and a deep understanding of the workloads reliant on the infrastructure. This isn’t merely about provisioning a few instances; it involves managing a vast array of workloads and navigating the plethora of cloud products and services available. Despite the overwhelming choices, the potential for digital transformation and optimization is significant.

Achieving optimal performance and financial efficiency requires experience and automation. On average, we’ve helped our clients save 42 percent more through our optimization services compared to managing their own resources.

We identify four key drivers of cloud optimization:

1. Cloud Migration

   The initial step to optimizing IT resources, and often the most prevalent for enterprises, is migrating to the cloud. This transition allows for immediate cost savings by enabling businesses to pay only for the resources they consume. The outdated model of purchasing IT resources for anticipated future needs is no longer viable. This migration can lead to substantial savings in three main areas: time spent on planning future requirements, the space needed for data centers, and the costs associated with IT hardware and software. Companies can see initial savings of 40 to 60 percent on their IT spending through migration to AWS without the necessity of rewriting applications or committing to large-scale transformation projects. For instance, Yamaha has reported annual savings of $500,000, while DVF achieved a 60 percent reduction in hosted infrastructure costs compared to their previous provider. Conde Nast is another notable example, having improved performance while reducing operational costs by 40 percent.

2. Performance Optimization

   Continuous optimization in the cloud is essential. Auto scaling is a prominent strategy for adjusting performance dynamically, allowing IT to allocate resources based on real-time demand. Once workloads are in the cloud, organizations can analyze actual resource usage and leverage auto scaling to reduce costs while meeting demand. However, proper performance tuning must precede auto scaling; selecting the right instance type and storage, and ensuring that auto scaling is adequately configured, are crucial steps. Clients can enhance performance by acquiring additional IOPS or replacing Amazon EBS volumes when necessary.

3. Financial Efficiency

   Financial optimization is one of the most complex and variable aspects of cloud computing. New product introductions can greatly benefit clients but may also introduce challenges. We often observe prospects focusing on financial optimization before addressing migration and performance, which should be part of a holistic financial strategy for achieving overall savings. We advise clients to first migrate workloads and assess their performance needs before investing in Reserved Instances to maximize resource utilization and ROI. Establishing foundational practices such as organization-wide tagging, visibility into reporting KPIs, and understanding workload requirements can lead to significant savings. For instance, Motorola implemented this strategy, resulting in greater savings and ROI compared to their legacy service provider.

4. Evolving to Optimal AWS Services

   The next step in maximizing performance and achieving greater cost savings involves evolving AWS services. While some companies begin by refactoring, we have found that this can be challenging for those unfamiliar with cloud operations. Our proven methodology aligns with clients’ positions in their cloud journey, allowing employees and vendors to embrace the cloud as the “new normal.” Once acclimated, they can explore and grasp new products and services for further advancement. Companies like Scor Velogica saved an additional 30 percent on hosting and support costs by transitioning their applications into a cloud-native environment. Celgene significantly decreased the time required to run HPC jobs from months to hours through this strategy. We practice what we preach, having transitioned from Microsoft SQL to Amazon Aurora, enhancing performance and capacity without increasing costs or risks. Clients often take incremental steps, moving to services like Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS) to realize operational savings and reduce administrative burdens.

As an AWS Managed Service Provider (MSP) like Cloud Innovations, we are committed to guiding clients through these transformative processes. For further insights on feedback and criticism, check out this resource. To stay updated on trends in the industry, refer to this authority on the topic. Additionally, this excellent resource provides valuable information on effective training practices.

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