Kamil Porembiński
Did you know that your company may be paying too much for cloud services, even if everything seems to be under control? In today’s world, where cloud computing offers tremendous flexibility, scalability, and the ability to quickly implement projects, controlling costs is becoming increasingly challenging.
Despite apparent control, many organisations lose tens or even hundreds of thousands of pounds annually. According to a study conducted by Flexera in 2023, as many as 82% of companies admitted that they regularly exceed their budget for cloud services, and the average level of wasted expenditure is around 30% of total cloud costs. This is because they lack the right tools, knowledge and processes to manage their spending effectively. Lack of ongoing analysis, improper resource allocation, and thoughtless maintenance of unused instances are just some of the problems. It was in response to these challenges that the FinOps approach was developed — a practice that radically changes the way we think about cloud costs.
FinOps is more than just a set of techniques and tools. It is a comprehensive philosophy based on collaboration between IT, finance and business teams. Its goal is to make joint decisions based on data, not assumptions. In a dynamic cloud environment where traditional budgeting models fail, FinOps enables agile, informed cost management.
Instead of reacting to unpleasant surprises at the end of the month, teams operating in accordance with FinOps analyse resource consumption in real time. The key here is not only technology, but also a change in organisational culture: for example, introducing a rule that each project team has its own representative in the monthly cloud cost review. This change also means that purchasing decisions are not made solely by finance, but jointly with technical departments, which allows for faster adaptation of strategies to business needs and reduces the risk of inefficient spending. creating a common language, transparent goals and measurable indicators.
FinOps enables immediate monitoring of expenses and quick response to deviations. Instead of monthly analyses and delayed controls, organisations can detect unnecessary resources and suboptimal configurations on an ongoing basis.
Imagine a system that detects an instance running at night despite the absence of users, using tools such as AWS CloudWatch, Azure Monitor, or Google Cloud Operations Suite. This makes it possible to quickly detect anomalies and immediately implement automatic resource-saving mechanisms. With the FinOps approach, such a situation is not only immediately detected, but also leads to the automatic shutdown of unnecessary resources. The result? Visible savings after just a few days.
FinOps requires a change in thinking across the entire organisation. Technology is no longer the sole domain of the IT department, and costs are no longer just an accounting concern. This practice introduces shared responsibility for spending, enabling the entire company to make more informed decisions.
Developers begin to understand that every architectural decision has a real impact on the invoice. For example, the choice between a database running in continuous mode and a serverless solution can mean a difference of thousands of pounds per month. Such decisions are no longer made solely with performance in mind, but also with long-term operating costs in mind. Finance teams are gaining technical expertise that helps them accurately assess the validity of expenses. This collaboration leads to better budget planning and faster response to market needs.
Imagine that your team is planning to implement a new cloud application. In the traditional model, teams launch resources ‘just in case.’ Servers run continuously, test environments are never shut down, and after a few weeks, an unpleasant surprise in the form of a high bill appears. Frantic analyses and searches for culprits begin.
With FinOps, things look different. Already at the planning stage, the question arises: how much will it cost? The team has access to up-to-date data and can make decisions based on actual needs and the available budget.
Someone suggests using cheaper spot instances. Another team member implements a schedule for automatically shutting down test environments at night. Yet another checks the possibility of reserving resources, which translates into savings of several dozen percent. The result? Costs under control, greater efficiency and no unpleasant surprises.
Unlike many IT initiatives, FinOps is not something that is implemented once and then shelved. It is a continuous process of education, analysis and optimisation. The most mature organisations treat FinOps as part of their daily operations.
Regular cost reviews, weekly meetings of cloud teams, employee education, and transparent dashboards for managers are the foundations of effective FinOps. Thanks to them, companies achieve cost predictability and real savings without sacrificing service quality.
If your organisation uses the cloud or plans to implement it, now is the right time to ask yourself: can we afford not to use FinOps? It may turn out that it is not budget cuts but better decisions that bring real savings.
FinOps is not a fad. It is a necessity for companies that want to grow responsibly, enjoy better budget control, respond more quickly to market changes, and increase the transparency of IT spending. It helps build investor confidence and deliver value without unnecessary costs. In a reality where every second of application operation has a price, FinOps is a partner you can’t afford to be without at your decision-making table.
