Organizing for Cloud Operations –

Challenges and Lessons Learned

Khalid Hakim, VMware

Kevin Lees, VMware

OPT5215

#OPT5215

2

Your Presenters

Khalid Hakim, Operations Architect

Kevin Lees, Principal Architect

3

Key “Takeaways” for You

Premise:

Organizational changes are key to IT’s success in the Cloud Era

• “Business as Usual” has CHANGED

• Transforming yields REAL results

• Transforming involves CHANGING the Operating Model

• There are IMPACTS and CHALLENGES but they can be OVERCOME

4

Transforming Involves CHANGING the

Operating Model

5

Impact of Cloud on IT Operations

Traditional IT Ops

Static

Primarily manual

IT provisioned

Dedicated IT services

Cloud Ops

Dynamic

Highly automated

Self-service provisioning

Services brokered from

many providers

6

Operations Transformation in the Cloud Era

7

1.2

1.5

2.2

3.1

1.00

1.50

2.00

2.50

3.00

3.50

4.00

5 or Less 6 to 10 11 to 15 16 or more

Overa

ll R

OI

(Avg

1.6

2)

Number transformation Areas (Avg 6.2) Total possible = 25.

Source - VMware 2013 CloudOps Transformation Benchmark

N = 178

Return on Operations Transformation investment

Operations Transformation Has Demonstrable Results

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Highly Automated, Proactive Operating Model

Component Characteristics

Organization

▪ Service oriented: Service-focused, delivering what the user needs

when they need it and at the level of service they require

▪ Integrated: Ensure operating model success through cross-

functional communication and cooperation

DATA CENTER OF THE FUTURE – OPERATING MODEL

Process /

tools

▪ Standardized self-service catalog (with automation): Increase

agility and decrease “time to business” while making end-users more

self-sufficient.

▪ Extensive automation: Increase responsiveness and reduce risk

when provisioning / deploying / managing services and infrastructure

▪ Policy-based Control: Increase standardization and governance

▪ Proactive, integrated operations: Increase efficiency and service

levels across the environment through proactive processes using

integrated, “fit-for-purpose” tools

▪ Financial management & measure: Deliver and manage value

added services to the business based on an understanding of cost,

risk, compliance & business value while making informed decisions

based on continuous measurement

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Cloud Operating Model – Organizational Perspective

Cloud Infrastructure Operations

Cloud Tenant Operations

NOC /

Service

Desk

Application Development

Monitoring

Tools

End-user

Line

of

Business

10

Organizational Impacts, Challenges and

Lessons Learned

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Previously…

Central IT organization:

Provides a complete

platform

Business units or

departments:

Use the platform

Rogue users did it

ALL themselves 3

2

Direct delivery of the platform to users

2 1 &

Infrastructure

team

Application

team

Database

team

Business analyst

typically residing in

business unit

1

IT “Business

analyst” General

user group

12

Focused Teams

…with a specific emphasis on being a provider of services aligned to

business needs

Infrastructure

Ops

Cloud Infrastructure

Ops

Service Mgmt Team

(“Tenant Ops”)

General

user group

IT LOBs

Customer Relationship

Manager(s)

13

Infrastructure Ops

functional teams

Cross-functional Teams

…requiring a mechanism for enforcing interaction and collaboration

Cloud Infrastructure

Team

Service Mgmt Team

(“Tenant Ops”)

IT

14

Roles and Skillsets

…both modified and new to support process and tool change

Cloud Infrastructure

Ops

Service Mgmt Team

(“Tenant

Ops”)

Cloud

Architect

Cloud

Administrator

Cloud

Analyst Cloud

Developer

Service

Owner

Service

Portfolio

Manager

Service

Architect

Customer

Relationship

Manager

Service

Administrator

Service

Analyst

Service

Developer

15

Cloud Infrastructure Operations

Cloud Tenant Operations

NOC /

Service

Desk

Application Development

Monitoring

Tools

End-user

Team Interactions

Line

of

Business

Prod Ops: Level 3 Service Dev

Prod Ops:

Level 3

App Dev: as a

customer

Service Dev:

(DevOps)

16

Cultural Shift and a Willingness to Change

Cultural Change

Communication

Enablement

Motivation

Image source: www.topnews.in

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Taking It to the Next Level –

Other Impacts

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The Impacts of Scale as well as SDDC

Implementation

From consolidation to

specialization

Redefining roles

even further

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In Conclusion

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Conclusions

“Business as Usual” has CHANGED, but

Transforming will yield demonstrable

RESULTS, but

The operating model needs to CHANGE

which

IMPACTS the organization resulting in

CHALLENGES that

Can be OVERCOME!

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More Info – Online Community & Resources

Blog Blogs.vmware.com/cloudops

Twitter @vmwarecloudops

Cloud Operations Services http://www.vmware.com/uk/services/cloud-

operations-services

“Organizing for the Cloud” White

Paper

http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/services/VMware-

Organizing-for-the-Cloud-Whitepaper.pdf

vCloud Architecture Toolkit http://www.vmware.com/uk/cloud-computing/cloud-

architecture/vcat-toolkit3.html

Cloud Operations YouTube videos e.g. “Operating a More Reliable Cloud” -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDENm-oWaR0

Cloud Operations BrightTalk

Channel: https://www.brighttalk.com/channel/9105

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Other VMware Activities Related to This Session

Group Discussions:

OPT1003-GD

Cloud Lifecycle Services with David Crane

OPT5215

THANK YOU

Organizing for Cloud Operations –

Challenges and Lessons Learned

Khalid Hakim, VMware

Kevin Lees, VMware

OPT5215

#OPT5215