Cloudcast Basics

Cloudcast Media

From the creators of the #1 Cloud Computing podcast, "The Cloudcast" (@thecloudcastnet), comes Cloudcast Basics. Each season will teach you the basics of Cloud Computing, in an easy to learn format. Aaron Delp and Brian Gracely bring over 10 years of Cloud experience, and they can help anyone get up to speed on Cloud Computing quickly!

  • 10 minutes 19 seconds
    Other Considerations for Cloud Economics

    SHOW: Season 3, Show 4

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    OTHER CONSIDERATIONS FOR CLOUD ECONOMICS

    Introduction & Explanation: 

    • Read up on how other people have engaged with the cloud and their experiences from an economic perspective - both good and bad. 
    • Baseline your usage with early applications and usage models. 
    • Focus early-on to align your cloud costs to the revenues or business metrics for specific projects. 
    • Consider evolving your Financial team to understand the various cloud economic models, or consider investing in FinOps skills and tools
    • Understand your vendors’s business model - where/when do they discount, where/when do they apply credits, etc.
    • Educate your teams that experimentation is something to embrace. Educate them about how to leverage the services within the cloud to augment their teams. 


    SUBSCRIBE: Please subscribe anywhere you get podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, Pandora, etc.).

    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

    FEEDBACK?

    27 April 2021, 9:00 pm
  • 11 minutes 29 seconds
    How Cloud Economics Impacts Business Thinking

    SHOW: Season 3, Show 3

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    HOW CLOUD ECONOMICS SHIFTS BUSINESS THINKING

    Introduction & Explanation: 

    Let’s start with a simple concept - annual budgeting. Every company does it, and it’s partially based on data and partially based on guessing (a.k.a. “forecasting”). 

    • Nearly every business project is going to have a technology element
    • Business projects have a scope, a timeline, and a measurement. They budget them by the quarter, half-year and fiscal-year. 
    • Business opportunities often involve something new.

    Legacy IT Economics have never been able to keep up with this model, hence cloud computing disrupted both a technology model, but also a business model. 

    • Cloud allows experimentation (fail-fast, A/B testing, parallel experimentation, fast scale-up or scale-down, etc.)
    • Cloud allows the addition of technical skills within additional people
    • Cloud allows access to global resources
    • Cloud allows access to new innovations and technologies

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    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

    FEEDBACK?

    27 April 2021, 7:00 pm
  • 13 minutes 51 seconds
    Basics of Cloud Economics

    SHOW: Season 3, Show 2

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    THE BASICS OF CLOUD ECONOMICS

    Introduction & Explanation: 

    1. Payment Flexibility (Free Tiers, Per-user (SaaS), On-Demand, Reserved-Instances, Usage-Credits, Spot Markets, Capacity Usage); Can Mix & Match as needed
    2. Immediate access to different parts of the stack, at different price points and different trade-off levels (IaaS vs. Serverless vs. PaaS vs. SaaS)
    3. A certain amount of IT skills can be “outsourced” to the cloud, but with more flexible payment models than legacy outsourcing. Not actually moving the people, but acquiring technology that runs itself.
    4. Discounts tend to live at the beginning (free tiers, introductory offers), and then when you start becoming “too big to leave”.
    5. Keeping track of spending is just as complicated, and sometimes more complicated than in your data center - can only spin up what you own vs. the “unlimited cloud”
    6. Pricing models continue to be complex in the cloud (per-user, per-task, per-GB, per-usage, etc.), but there are so many options that you might be able to better align it to your business needs. 

    SUBSCRIBE: Please subscribe anywhere you get podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, Pandora, etc.).

    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

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    27 April 2021, 6:00 pm
  • 10 minutes 54 seconds
    Traditional IT Economics

    SHOW: Season 3, Show 1

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    TRADITIONAL IT ECONOMICS

    Introduction & Explanation: 

    • Dominated by proprietary hardware and software. 
    • 3yr, 5yr, 7yr hardware refresh cycles - required to depreciate assets
    • 1yr, 3yr, 5yr software contracts - often include in “Enterprise License Agreements” (ELAs)
    • Successful POCs were often contractually bound to buy the solution.
    • Not all software was easy to upgrade between tiers of features. No “free-tier”.
    • Large vendors would have financing arms to create loans, or “on-demand” pricing (typically based on “true-up” reports at various times of year).
    • Businesses still needed to pay for all the facilities to house the data center (building, power, electricity, insurance, etc.)
    • Open source software began to change some of those dynamics, but not all companies had the staff to operate open source software.

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    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

    FEEDBACK?

    27 April 2021, 5:00 pm
  • 1 minute 26 seconds
    Cloudcast Basics - Season 3 - Trailer

    SHOW: Season 3, Trailer

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    In this season of Cloudcast Basics, we’re going to focus on how the Economics of Cloud Computing have evolved from Traditional IT to the newer Cloud Computing environments. We look at how to create efficient economics models for your business, how Cloud evolves your thinking about technology usage, and other economic considerations for your business.


    SUBSCRIBE: Please subscribe anywhere you get podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, Pandora, etc.).

    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

    FEEDBACK?

    27 April 2021, 4:00 pm
  • 14 minutes 49 seconds
    5 Business Questions for Cloud Newbies

    SHOW: Season 2, Show 8

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    1. If Cloud Computing has been around for 10+ years, why are the majority of business applications still not in the cloud? 
    2. Do all cloud providers essentially charge the same prices? 
    3. Are there any metrics or baselines we should consider for different aspects of cloud usage? 
    4. Do any traditional business skills transfer to the cloud? (accounting, budgeting, project management, etc.)?
    5. Should we add an economist or accountant to our technical teams?
    6. When should I move from listening to Cloudcast Basics to The Cloudcast?


    SUBSCRIBE: Please subscribe anywhere you get podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, Pandora, etc.).

    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

    FEEDBACK?

    28 February 2021, 2:00 pm
  • 15 minutes 37 seconds
    Enabling Business Transformation with Cloud Computing

    SHOW: Season 2, Show 7

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    FRAMEWORK FOR CONSIDERATION

    This show is sort of a culmination of the previous Season 2 shows - Innovation, Cost Reduction, Risk Reduction, Competitive Awareness, Managing Staffing, etc. For a long time, companies liked to say “we’re not a <xyz company>, we’re a software company that happens to also do <xyz>”. COVID really challenged if that was true for a number of companies.   

    1. Are you able to use technology to adapt your business when significant market changes happen? 
    2. Is your company able to respond to significant market changes with innovative technologies in a timely manner? 
    3. Is your business able to survive a significant market change with alternative ways to engage markets? 
    4. Does your leadership team support the investments to become a company that can take advantage of digital transformation? 

    REAL-WORLD CONSIDERATIONS:

    • Transformation is difficult. Transformation often happens when a crisis occurs - don’t waste a crisis. 
    • Leverage cloud computing to “invest ahead” of change, both in terms of technology and people. 

    SUBSCRIBE: Please subscribe anywhere you get podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, Pandora, etc.).

    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

    FEEDBACK?

    28 February 2021, 1:00 pm
  • 15 minutes 59 seconds
    The Impacts of Cloud Computing on IT Staffing

    SHOW: Season 2, Show 6

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    FRAMEWORK FOR CONSIDERATION

    Even though there are some similar technologies between what you do today and in the cloud, how you interact with them can be very different. 

    1. Do you have people on staff that are curious about technology? Want to learn new things?
    2. Be prepared to invest in your people learning how to work in the cloud. Certifications in the new world are valuable. 
    3. Don’t assume that “like” technologies are alike between data center and cloud.
    4. Don’t dismiss “like” skills as not being transferable to the cloud.  
    5. Invest in automation. Invest in security. 
    6. Don’t be afraid to bring in some new people with cloud skills. 

    REAL-WORLD CONSIDERATIONS:

    • Cloud skills and certifications tend to pay better than legacy skills and certifications (check out Indeed, Dice, etc.)
    • Don’t dismiss the value of understanding existing corporate culture, but also don’t expect it to easily or seamlessly transfer to the cloud.
    • Expect security and compliance to be the slowest to adapt to a move to cloud - the things they have to answer to (regulations, compliance, auditors, etc.) are even slower to change.  

    SUBSCRIBE: Please subscribe anywhere you get podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, Pandora, etc.).

    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

    FEEDBACK?

    28 February 2021, 12:00 pm
  • 18 minutes 29 seconds
    Tradeoffs in Cloud Computing Architectures

    SHOW: Season 2, Show 5

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    FRAMEWORK FOR CONSIDERATION

    This has always been a contentious topic, with varying options and quite a bit of evolution in the industry over time. The reality (in today’s world) is that most companies use a variety of cloud services, whether that’s IaaS. PaaS or SaaS-level. 

    1. Does your company make centralized or decentralized decisions on cloud usage?
    2. Is there a distinct business reason to use multiple clouds? 
    3. Does your company expect to integrate applications across clouds, or do they tend to be isolated? 
    4. Do you have the people (or partners) to manage across multiple clouds? 
    5. Are acquisitions a big part of your company’s innovation strategy? 
    6. How much do you have to care about the longer-term future of your company?

    REAL-WORLD CONSIDERATIONS:

    • All of the cloud providers, and many software vendors, that can help you run consistently across multiple clouds.
    • There is integration technology that can help you tie together multiple applications (via APIs).
    • Most companies don’t “cloudburst” applications between clouds, because they usually have built up enough data gravity that it would be expensive to move the app and the data. 

    SUBSCRIBE: Please subscribe anywhere you get podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, Pandora, etc.).

    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

    FEEDBACK?

    28 February 2021, 11:00 am
  • 11 minutes 49 seconds
    Creating a Business Advantage with Cloud Computing

    SHOW: Season 2, Show 4

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    FRAMEWORK FOR CONSIDERATION

    1. Does your technology impact your customers? 
    2. Does your technology improve or degrade your teams? 
    3. Do your competitors better leverage technology than your company?
    4. Do you use technology “excellence” to help recruit new talent? Do you actively market your technology excellent, opportunities, or projects, etc.

    REAL-WORLD CONSIDERATIONS:

    • Quite a bit of what we discussed in Episodes 1-3 can be applied to gaining a competitive business advantage (Innovation, Experimentation, Reduce Costs, Manage Risks).
    • But forward looking companies are now realizing that every business decision is also a technological decision, and using it to their advantage.
    • Are your people speaking about it in public?
    • Are you positioning your company as a technology-centric company?
    • Are you able to hire people in locations where technology is prevalent, or allow remote workers? 
    • Do you understand how to make technology modular, via partnerships, or using 3rd-party services instead of building it yourself? 


    SUBSCRIBE:     Please subscribe anywhere you get podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, Pandora, etc.).

    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

    FEEDBACK?

    28 February 2021, 10:00 am
  • 14 minutes 27 seconds
    Reducing Risk with Cloud Computing

    SHOW: Season 2, Show 3

    OVERVIEW: From the creators of the Internet's #1 Cloud Computing podcast, The Cloudcast, Aaron Delp (@aarondelp) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely) introduce this new podcast,  Cloudcast Basics.

    FRAMEWORK FOR CONSIDERATION

    This episode is going to focus on both how you can reduce risk (overall, vs. what you had before), but also look at what risks you need to consider when using the cloud.

    1. Risk of Innovation: We’d like to try something new, but will we be successful? (setup, pick the right technology, pick the right vendor, allocate the right budget)
    2. Risk of Planning: We planned and planned, but will we be successful when it’s time to execute? 
    3. Risk of Overspending: Depends on the service, might actually be more challenging in cloud (requires a change of thought-process)
    4. Risk of Failure: The scope of failure can be (somewhat) better controlled, although there are still examples of cloud failures. This is more about scope and timing that can be more granular.

    REAL-WORLD CONSIDERATIONS:

    • It’s important to understand the “Shared Responsibility Model” when working in the cloud. What do you own, and what does the cloud own? Not enough companies understand this.
    • Risk (or Opportunity Costs) are very difficult to measure. Sometimes you need to work backwards and look at what you can control and what you can’t control. 
    • Can you design around what you can control? 
    • Can you design around what you can’t control?

    RISKS OF USING THE CLOUD

    • Not having good governance - self-service can lead to some very large bills
    • Not having good cost controls - see above
    • It’s important to understand the “Shared Responsibility Model” when working in the cloud. What do you own, and what does the cloud own? Not enough companies understand this.


    SUBSCRIBE:     Please subscribe anywhere you get podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, Pandora, etc.).

    CLOUD NEWS OF THE WEEK - http://bit.ly/cloudcast-cnotw

    LEARNING CLOUD COMPUTING:
    Here are some great places to begin your cloud journey, if you're interested in getting hands-on experience with the technology, or you'd like to build your skills towards a certification. 

    FEEDBACK?

    28 February 2021, 9:00 am
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