The goal of every cloud architecture team is not to find the most popular cloud solution with the most features, but to find the solution that provides the most value to the business. That means looking at other metrics that CFOs and finance people often share. Here’s why this is beneficial to both the business and the architect:
Finding clear business value
Cloud computing architects face a critical challenge of demonstrating tangible business value. It is natural for cloud architects to align with CIOs, who traditionally focus on technology management and the latest trends. However, by shifting to the CFO’s perspective, cloud strategies can be aligned with financial objectives and maximize the return on investment in terms of business value.
The CFO’s domain includes numbers, efficiency, and value creation. Today’s CFOs are more focused than ever on understanding how spending translates into return on investment and strategic benefits. Cloud architects must recognize the importance of attributing tangible business outcomes to cloud initiatives. This reflects the nature of financial analysis, which scrutinizes the potential return on every dollar spent.
According to Deloitte research, companies that leverage cloud-driven innovation see financial performance improvements of more than 20%. I personally researched this topic a few years ago and found that integrating financial perspectives into cloud architecture decisions is beneficial and necessary to accurately predict and demonstrate business performance. I don’t know if this is an obvious question, but it’s something I talk about about twice a week when it comes to cloud and AI.
Technology doesn’t solve everything
While CIOs often pursue technological advancements and operational efficiencies, CFOs demand a more granular understanding of cost structures and revenue impacts. Many cloud initiatives have failed to deliver the expected benefits, largely because they have not focused on cost and value metrics. This is where I emphasize transparency and measurable performance outcomes.
Cloud architects need to move beyond the hype and focus on real applications and benefits. More than just technology improvements are needed, and architects need to make a clear financial case. This is especially important in an environment where executives demand justification for every technology spend.
To align cloud architecture strategy with business outcomes, architects must go beyond their traditional roles and engage strategically with critical financial metrics. For example, reducing operational costs through efficient cloud resource management has a direct impact on the bottom line of a business. Successful cloud architects can provide CFOs with predictive analytics and cost-saving projections to demonstrate clear business value and market advantage.
In addition, as the pressure on businesses to operate sustainably increases, architects can leverage the potential of the cloud to operate in an environmentally friendly manner. This is often a strategic outcome that CFOs can directly experience in terms of the company’s financial and social governance indicators. Of course, many people still nod their heads when the topic of sustainability is brought up, but few seem to be interested.
The way forward
To build the best business-oriented cloud architecture, enterprises should focus on:
Align your cloud strategy with your business goals. Enterprises should ensure that their cloud initiatives directly support their goals, such as revenue growth, cost reduction, and market competitiveness. Regularly engaging both IT and business stakeholders to review and adjust their cloud strategy can help align technology with changing business priorities.
Implement strong financial governance and optimization. Establishing comprehensive financial oversight can help ensure that your cloud spend is delivering maximum value. This includes using tools to track and manage costs, as well as a cloud financial management practice called FinOps. FinOps helps you monitor usage, optimize spending, and scale resources based on demand to ensure efficient budget allocation and improve ROI.
Improve collaboration across departments.Fostering collaboration across IT, finance, and business functions can drive cloud initiatives that leverage insights from across the organization. Teams across functions with technical or business expertise can create technically sound and commercially viable solutions that ultimately solve real business challenges and improve operational efficiency.
Cloud computing architects who bring a CFO perspective to their cloud architecture practices are better positioned to drive successful business outcomes. As cloud architects transition to a business-centric role, integrating technical skills with financial acumen is critical to driving innovative and profitable outcomes.
Cloud architects help organizations fully leverage the transformative potential of cloud computing, like CFOs who explore and optimize their financial environment by focusing on quantifiable business value. In a world where economic performance is paramount, the ability to think like a CFO can be key to cloud architecture success. I highly recommend you give it a try.
editor@itworld.co.kr
Source: www.itworld.co.kr
