Achieving Cloud Cost Optimization Through Strategy and Governance

Secure Server Workspace and Protection Against Cybercrime with WatServ

Achieving Cloud Cost Optimization Through Strategy and Governance

By WatServ
April 28, 2021

Cloud cost optimization is a popular and at times controversial topic of discussion. Part of the reason for this is because optimization is often understood as merely a way to bring costs down and meet business KPIs. However, this type of framing oversimplifies the conversation by situating cloud optimization as a tactical conversation, rather than a strategic one.

At WatServ, our cloud cost optimization methodology is an ongoing, iterative process that incorporates efficiencies from both strategic cloud planning and operational-level cost management tools and tactics. It also recognizes governance as an important component that affects outcomes – ensuring policies and processes are proactively defined to govern and implement cost improvements. In fact, we have found that cloud cost optimization is most successful when the process goes beyond simply reducing costs, and includes a look at ownership, collaboration, innovation and accountability from both the partner and client perspectives, in order to drive efficiencies.

With deep experience in guiding cost management strategies, WatServ has developed innovative practices that can be used to address a wide range of cost challenges. Below is a sample, with common cost management challenges on the left and examples of our mitigation approaches on the right.

Common Challenges and WatServ’s Demonstrated Mitigation Strategies

We commonly hear:

What we might suggest…

How do I stay on top of right-sizing my existing infrastructure?

Establish accountability for a data-driven approach 

Create accountability in your organization for assessing performance monitoring and server management data. Empower staff on your team with the right skills to leverage WatServ’s cloud management tools and reporting to drive actions on cost containment such as resource scaling and resource re-allocation.

I am trying to keep on top of day to day dollars, but how can I effectively bring our annual projection of infrastructure costs down?

Align on long-term goals for your cloud platform and create an imperative for change 

Establish a clear perspective on where the organization is heading with respect to its cloud strategy. Ensure that there has has been a thorough assessment of operations and applications and align leadership on the end-state goal. We recommend working with your advisors to develop a long-term roadmap that identifies clear, compelling cost improvements.

How can I mobilize our organization and resources to make impactful cost improvements?

Create a sustainable cost management process 

Delivering cost improvements with lasting impact requires the wider organizational ecosystem to reinforce the change. Establish effective governance processes to ensure cost recommendations are being implemented, and create a proactive set of parameters and policies to manage consumption, limit costs and provide transparency.

Need assistance optimizing your cloud? WatServ’s team is here to help. Speak with one of our cloud engineers to explore your options. Reach out today.

WatServ demonstrates best-in-class capability and market leadership through proven technology and customer commitment.

About

WatServ is an IT solutions provider that helps organizations digitally transform through cloud technologies and managed services.

Serving clients as a trusted advisor since 2006, WatServ provides experience-tested, strategic solutions across all stages of the digital transformation journey. Clients choose WatServ to migrate infrastructure and applications to the cloud, secure critical data, implement disaster recovery, deploy virtual desktop, enable data-readiness for productivity solutions and manage IT environments.

Our clients span a broad range of industries, and we’re a global supplier of IT services for many Brookfield Portfolio Companies. To help our mid-size clients, we provide scalable offerings that simplify cloud adoption and drive business optimization. For enterprise clients, we co-create cloud solutions that enable stability and efficiency for complex IT tools and processes.

With more than 15 years of experience, WatServ has a track record of delivering quantifiable business results and a superior client experience. Ranked as one of Canada’s Top 100 Solution Providers for the last three years in a row, WatServ is always on.

4 Reasons to Pick a Security-First Cloud Solutions Provider

Top Managed Solutions Provider WatServ

4 Reasons to Pick a Security-First Cloud Solutions Provider

By WatServ
February 25, 2021

Is your business considering working with a cloud solutions company to provide cloud compliance, consulting, engineering or managed services? If so, you’ll be joining a rapidly expanding market. In fact, Gartner predicts the worldwide public cloud services market to increase by 17% this year, reaching $214.3 billion globally.

Migrating from conventional servers to the cloud can have many benefits for your business, including increased efficiency, scalability, resiliency and affordability. Cloud adoption can mean better flexibility, enhanced disaster recovery and accelerated digital transformation for businesses of all sizes.

However, before you take the plunge and choose a cloud solutions provider to engineer and/or maintain your cloud, it’s critical to ensure they take an important topic seriously: security.

In this article, we’re going to dig into this topic and look at 4 reasons why you should choose a cloud solutions provider that prioritizes your cloud security compliance.

Read Now: Sagen is Digital Ready for the Future with WatServ Providing Cloud & Cybersecurity

best managed service provider with WatServ

1. The public cloud introduces new security considerations.

As more companies move to the cloud – especially the public cloud – a host of new information security challenges are emerging. In fact, CSO recently put together a list of the top 12 cloud security threats, which include:

  1. Data breaches
  2. Insufficient identity, credential, and access management
  3. Insecure interfaces and APIs
  4. System vulnerabilities
  5. Account hijacking
  6. Malicious insiders
  7. Advanced persistent threats (APTs)
  8. Data loss
  9. Insufficient due diligence
  10. Abuse and nefarious use of cloud services
  11. Denial of service (DoS)
  12. Shared technology vulnerabilities

We’ve heard about many of these threats in the media – and we recently wrote about ransomware attacks on our blog – because these threats affect businesses of all sizes.

For instance, in the first half of 2019 alone, we heard about data breaches increasing by 54% from the previous year. And, with an estimated 3.4 billion phishing emails being sent out daily worldwide, almost all of us can say we’ve been on the receiving end of a phishing email.

Sure, not all of these cyberthreats target the cloud specifically, but with the cloud being accessible online, many of them do.

The takeaway: While security threats are a part of life regardless of where your data is stored, and the cloud introduces several new cybersecurity concerns, a good cloud solutions partner will understand these security threats and take them seriously. Most importantly, they will offer 360 insight on how to mitigate your risk – so your business can stay focused on leveraging the immense power of the cloud to benefit growth.

managed service provider software with WatServ

2. It’s up to the cloud customer (not the cloud service provider) to protect business data.

Did you know that cloud security is a shared responsibility? The best way to illustrate this is to take the example of a condo building. It’s up to the building owner to ensure adequate security is in place to protect the building – like having control over the front door and installing working smoke detectors in hallways and public spaces. However, what you do inside your condo is your own responsibility. If you leave a pot boiling on the stove and forget to replace your smoke detector battery, it’s at your own risk. Likewise, if you let someone into your unit and they steal your jewelry, that’s your mistake.

The same goes for the public cloud. Cloud service providers (like Microsoft Azure or Google Cloud Platform) are responsible for the security of the cloud, but it’s the customers (you)  who are responsible for the security of what gets put into the cloud and how that information gets accessed.

This is an important distinction to remember, since the majority of security failures are a result of a customer not taking appropriate action to protect themselves or monitor for threats.

In fact, Gartner found that “through 2022, at least 95% of cloud security failures will be the customer’s fault.”

The takeaway: You have a shared security responsibility when using the public cloud, with you holding a good chunk of that responsibility. Rather than face this responsibility alone, a good cloud solutions partner that prioritizes security will help you engineer and maintain your cloud in a way that minimizes your risks and provides continuous threat monitoring, detection and mitigation.

managed security service provider WatServ
 

3. Cloud security compliance challenges are changing all the time.

When speaking about the latest round of research on cloud security compliance, Gartner’s VP of Research, Jay Heiser, notably said, “CIOs must change their line of questioning from ‘Is the cloud secure?’ to ‘Am I using the cloud securely?’”.

This is a great way to look at it. There have been countless articles written and debates had over the question “is the cloud secure?” and “will I be more at risk if I move to the cloud?”, with customers looking for definitive answers. The truth is, the cloud, like anything else, will always be vulnerable to a mix of changing threats.

For instance, we’ve recently been hearing more about the threat of container software vulnerabilities, cryptographic exploits and meltdown or spectre as cybercrime becomes increasingly complex and sophisticated. Plus, internal threats will always remain a concern. The truth is, threats will never go away, so how you approach and handle them is what matters.

The takeaway: A cloud solutions partner that takes cloud security seriously can help you navigate these threats as they change from month to month and year to year. Threats will never go away, so adopting a mindset of “am I using the cloud securely?” will help you engage effectively with a partner that’s focused on adaptive risk assessment and mitigation.

4. There are steps that can be taken to mitigate risk.

Just as threats change monthly, so do technologies, tools and procedures designed to mitigate risk. A knowledgeable and up-to-date cloud partner can help you identify and navigate your vulnerabilities, so you can make an educated decision about your cloud strategy.

Some of the solutions that can be put in place may include:

  • Engineering your cloud environment using security best practices
  • Implementing or maturing security operations centers (SOCs)
  • Strengthen your existing security and governance procedures
  • Providing advanced threat detection and automated threat mitigation
  • Setting up continuous security monitoring
  • Ensuring good API hygiene
  • Providing managed endpoint protection and DDoS protection
  • Offering training to employees on threats like phishing and account hijacking
  • Looking at ‘passwordless’ methods of access management
  • Setting up procedures to review security analytics
  • Responding to incidents quickly and effectively

The cloud offers a huge range of benefits for businesses large and small. With almost 50% of data worldwide expected to be stored in public cloud environments by 2025, the cloud has shaped the world of computing in a whole new way.

By working with a cloud solutions provider that prioritizes cloud security compliance, you can put your energy into leveraging the incredible power of the cloud – while also making informed decisions about risk and enabling adaptive approaches to risk mitigation.

 

Need help protecting your cloud? WatServ is a security-focused cloud solutions provider that helps companies safeguard their cloud through CloudOps advanced managed services. Speak with one of WatServ team members today to learn more.

What Good Cybersecurity really means title cover

WHITEPAPER

What Does Good Cybersecurity Really Mean?

Download Now

WatServ demonstrates best-in-class capability and market leadership through proven technology and customer commitment.​

About

WatServ is an IT solutions provider that helps organizations digitally transform through cloud technologies and managed services.

Serving clients as a trusted advisor since 2006, WatServ provides experience-tested, strategic solutions across all stages of the digital transformation journey. Clients choose WatServ to migrate infrastructure and applications to the cloud, secure critical data, implement disaster recovery, deploy virtual desktop, enable data-readiness for productivity solutions and manage IT environments.

Our clients span a broad range of industries, and we’re a global supplier of IT services for many Brookfield Portfolio Companies. To help our mid-size clients, we provide scalable offerings that simplify cloud adoption and drive business optimization. For enterprise clients, we co-create cloud solutions that enable stability and efficiency for complex IT tools and processes.

With more than 15 years of experience, WatServ has a track record of delivering quantifiable business results and a superior client experience. Ranked as one of Canada’s Top 100 Solution Providers for the last three years in a row, WatServ is always on.

Blog Posts

More Posts from the WatServ Team.

The 6 Most-Asked Questions About WatServ’s Partnership Program

microsoft dynamics partner WatServ

The 6 Most-Asked Questions About WatServ’s Partnership Program

By WatServ
February 25, 2021

2019 was an exciting year for WatServ, made even more so thanks to our incredible partners.

In fact, we have numerous partners to thank for helping us acquire new clients, including but not limited to:

Mibusoft partner WatServ
LoanVision Partner WatServ
JoeSoftware partner WatServ
drinkit
BH
ACG

We deeply value your support and appreciate you choosing us as your partner.

Last year, we were also able to attend several industry events to connect with potential partners and spread the word about cloud technologies and digital transformation. We enjoyed meeting new people and seeing familiar faces at Directions North America in Las Vegas, the IWLA Tech and Ops Conference in Columbus, the User Group Summit in Orlando and many more.

Throughout the year, we had several potential partners reach out to us with questions about our Partnership Program. As a result, we’ve put together this list of FAQs.

If your organization is interested in partnering with us, we hope the following information will provide you with valuable insight.

Six Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About WatServ’s Partnership Program

1. Who is WatServ’s Partnership Program Ideal for?

Our partners generally fall within one of two groups:

  1. Microsoft Dynamics partners seeking industry-leading hosted platforms for ERP and financial applications in either Azure or Hybrid-Cloud
  2. IT consultants helping clients with digital transformations. When cloud migration from on-premise or co-location facilities are part of the digital transformation, WatServ is positioned to deliver.

Partners choose us so they can remain focused on their core capabilities, while trusting us to deliver cloud-infrastructure and advanced managed service solutions. Working with WatServ means partners can leverage our deep experience with cloud migrations and be confident in our technical knowledge given the cloud’s rapid pace of change.

2. What models of engagement does WatServ offer?

We offer two engagement models:

  1. Direct Model – Under this model, we have a direct relationship with the end customer. The partner introduces WatServ to the end customer and we develop contracts, obligations and SLAs. After collecting payments, we remit a revenue-sharing amount back to the referring partner.
  2. White Label Model – Under this model, WatServ has no direct relationship with the end customer and instead acts as a sub-supplier for the partner. WatServ develops contractual obligations, including SLAs, and we bill and collect payments from the partner for the services we provide. Often, partners will “pass through” our benefits to the end customer. Additionally, the partner has flexibility over pricing and may choose to include a mark-up on WatServ’s services. WatServ provides partners with a discount on services, which is equivalent to the revenue-sharing amounts under the Direct model.

When evaluating alternative models, consider the following questions:

  • How would you like the end customer to view the WatServ-partner relationship? Under the white label model, some of our partners still choose to disclose to the end customer their sub-supplier relationship with us. In this case, they prefer the white label model to reduce billing complexity for the end customer.
  • Under the white label model, are you comfortable and able to assume payment obligations for the end customer?
  • How important is it to you to have access to the cloud environment without approval from the end customer (usually a consideration in terms of speed of access)? If it’s important, the white label model may be more appropriate, since you are contractually our customer.

Although the two aforementioned engagement models are the most common, WatServ is open to discussing other needs and requirements.

3. Who owns the relationship with the end customer?

This will depend on the engagement model chosen.

Under the white label model, where WatServ has no direct relationship with the end customer, the partner will own the relationship with the end customer.

On the other hand, under the direct model arrangement, WatServ will own the relationship with the end customer, but only as it relates to the services we provide.

 

4. How does revenue sharing work between WatServ and the partner?

In exchange for partner-referred deals, WatServ will share specified revenues or margins with partners for the following services:
  1. One-time advisory, consulting and professional services;
  2. Private cloud hosting, inclusive of consumption and managed services;
  3. Public cloud managed services;
  4. Software licenses, on-premises type and application-related; and
  5. Value-added services provided by third-party firms.
For more details on specific percentage splits for revenue sharing, please contact us. Please note that WatServ shares private cloud consumption revenue with partners. However, public cloud consumption revenue is excluded from revenue sharing. WatServ also offers special bonuses to reward partners for referring larger-sized opportunities and to celebrate the first five deals closed upon joining the WatServ Partnership Program.

5. How are responsibilities and accountabilities split between the partner and WatServ?

The division of responsibilities and accountabilities are, at a high-level, shown in the following diagram:

 
 
 
 
 
 

WatServ designs, manages and maintains cloud infrastructure that the application(s) runs on, which is inclusive of networking through to runtime. Partners are responsible for the application and data layers.

6. Can you describe a typical opportunity lifecycle when working with WatServ?

At WatServ, we begin working with partners as early as possible in the opportunity lifecycle. This helps ensure accuracy and timeliness of work. The diagram below illustrates a typical opportunity lifecycle:

 
 
  1. Requirements Gathering – Upon learning of an opportunity, the partner shares cloud infrastructure requirements and specifications with WatServ. To facilitate the process, WatServ often provides a requirements questionnaire.
  2. Cloud Planning – After cloud requirements are finalized, WatServ custom-designs the cloud architecture to meet the required specifications. At this stage, WatServ produces indicative pricing, which can be presented to the end customer by either the partner or WatServ.
  3. Proposal Delivery and Acceptance by End Customer – In receipt of WatServ’s cloud solution, and often following additional conversations to resolve any questions, the end customer proceeds with the solution.
  4. Cloud Deploy – Coordinating with the partner, WatServ implements the cloud solution and helps the partner drive the project to go live.
  5. Cloud Maintain – Once the project has gone live and is in the post-implementation phase, WatServ transitions into maintenance mode, where we monitor, manage and continuously optimize the end customer’s cloud environment.

There you have it. Six of the most-asked questions about WatServ’s Partnership Program.

 

Want to learn more? Please reach out to [email protected] and member of our team will be in touch.

WatServ demonstrates best-in-class capability and market leadership through proven technology and customer commitment.​

About

WatServ is an IT solutions provider that helps organizations digitally transform through cloud technologies and managed services.

Serving clients as a trusted advisor since 2006, WatServ provides experience-tested, strategic solutions across all stages of the digital transformation journey. Clients choose WatServ to migrate infrastructure and applications to the cloud, secure critical data, implement disaster recovery, deploy virtual desktop, enable data-readiness for productivity solutions and manage IT environments.

Our clients span a broad range of industries, and we’re a global supplier of IT services for many Brookfield Portfolio Companies. To help our mid-size clients, we provide scalable offerings that simplify cloud adoption and drive business optimization. For enterprise clients, we co-create cloud solutions that enable stability and efficiency for complex IT tools and processes.

With more than 15 years of experience, WatServ has a track record of delivering quantifiable business results and a superior client experience. Ranked as one of Canada’s Top 100 Solution Providers for the last three years in a row, WatServ is always on.

Blog Posts

More Posts from the WatServ Team.

Office 365 MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication): Why You Should Enable It

Office 365 MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication): Why You Should Enable It

By WatServ
February 4, 2021

What is MFA?

Multi-factor authentication (MFA), is the ability to verify a login with at least one other verification point, beyond a single password. MFA for Office 365 is included as part of the Office 365 subscription at no additional cost.

Who should be using MFA?

Today, all users should be leveraging this security feature. In the recent past, multi-factor authentication (MFA) was only available to the most security-conscious companies. Large capital and operational costs kept this functionality within the realm of the large enterprise, which considered perimeter security essential to their business. In today’s climate of cybersecurity breaches, secure authentication practices are mandatory to avoid corporate embarrassment and hefty financial consequences. Also, the advent of the smartphone provided alternatives to the hard token smart cards. Soft tokens provided a simpler distribution method and simplified an IT or security department’s operational costs, but the supporting infrastructure, software, and integration still intimidated interested organizations. Public cloud and SaaS products existing outside of the borders of an Enterprise forced providers to meet the security requirements existing on-premise.

Why should I implement MFA?

Today, not having MFA enabled on public cloud services poses a tremendous security risk. MFA immediately reduces phishing and social engineering attacks by forcing an employee to accept and verify a login attempt. Passwords can be breached without exposing corporate data to the hacker. Secondarily, a verification request notifies the end user that something is amiss with their password, giving them the opportunity to update it and investigate how the password was compromised.

How do I implement it?

Enabling MFA in Office 365 is simple. Microsoft highly recommends enabling MFA for administrators at a minimum. Selectively enabling MFA provides organizations the opportunity to slowly roll out this essential security feature to minimize the impact on the support organization.

Logging in with a Global administrator on your tenant will bring you to the administrator portal for MFA. Once there, simply select the individual users you want to enable it for, then click enable. The next time they log in they will be prompted to set up their alternate access methods and preferred mechanism for verification.

How does it work?

When the user first logs in, they will be required to configure their alternate access method and verify it works. This alternate access method can be either a smartphone with the Microsoft Authenticator app installed, a phone number that accepts text messages, or an alternate email address. The Microsoft Authenticator app also provides a rotating number that can be used as the second factor. The image below shows an example of an ‘Approve sign in request’, on a smartphone using this app.

After verification, the user has full control over the MFA settings.

…not so fast!

Not all applications use Microsoft’s modern authentication method which supports MFA. If you aren’t using the Outlook app on your mobile phone, you will need to generate a highly complex app password to allow you to authenticate without the second factor. Microsoft recommends you create a unique app password per device so that it can be deleted in the event you lose that device. Once generated, copy the password to your clipboard – as this password will not be generated or seen again (see below). You can simply create a new password if you lose, or need to reset it. A user can manage their app passwords at this link: Click Here

Creating a new password is easy and quick. See the steps below to create an app password.

  1. Create a name for your app password
  2. Copy the new password to your clipboard

WatServ demonstrates best-in-class capability and market leadership through proven technology and customer commitment.​

About

WatServ is an IT solutions provider that helps organizations digitally transform through cloud technologies and managed services.

Serving clients as a trusted advisor since 2006, WatServ provides experience-tested, strategic solutions across all stages of the digital transformation journey. Clients choose WatServ to migrate infrastructure and applications to the cloud, secure critical data, implement disaster recovery, deploy virtual desktop, enable data-readiness for productivity solutions and manage IT environments.

Our clients span a broad range of industries, and we’re a global supplier of IT services for many Brookfield Portfolio Companies. To help our mid-size clients, we provide scalable offerings that simplify cloud adoption and drive business optimization. For enterprise clients, we co-create cloud solutions that enable stability and efficiency for complex IT tools and processes.

With more than 15 years of experience, WatServ has a track record of delivering quantifiable business results and a superior client experience. Ranked as one of Canada’s Top 100 Solution Providers for the last three years in a row, WatServ is always on.

Blog Posts

More Posts from the WatServ Team.

Growing Businesses Need Business Management Solutions That Can Keep Up

Growing Businesses Need Business Management Solutions That Can Keep Up

By WatServ
January 21, 2021

Successful businesses experience growth in a number of different ways from increased headcount, changing product lines, and a long list of satisfied customers. As your business is growing, you may notice that your management systems are not keeping up. Disparate accounting, inventory, and other specialty software impose limits to the volume and type of data you can manage. Don’t let your software hold your business back from meeting growth goals. Replace outdated systems with modern business management solutions.

Growth is great, until the point where you outgrow business systems. Many entry-level systems have limits to the number of users that can enter or access data. There are also limits on the data that can be collected or managed. Too much data can bog down the system, slowing down searches or crashing when the infrastructure or application can’t handle large datasets. As users become frustrated with these limitations, they turn to spreadsheets or other manual processes and workarounds. Entering data repeatedly from system to system is both time-consuming and risky.

If you are experiencing growing pains or are planning for future business growth, it’s time to deploy business management solutions that can keep up.

Support Business Growth with a Flexible, Agile ERP Solution

A flexible, agile enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution can support your business through periods of growth and change. Right out of the box, ERP offers comprehensive functionality including the ability to manage financials, inventory and supply chain, manufacturing and distribution operations, human resources and payroll, and other core business tasks.

Robust ERP solutions, such as those in the suite of Microsoft Dynamics ERP offerings, include built-in workflows to streamline common processes, improving the productivity of your team. Dashboards and business intelligence features – highlight key metrics, making it easier for managers to follow trending data, such as sales, inventory levels or customer buying behaviors. With real-time data, managers can respond faster to deviations in budgets or strategic goals. Many ERP solutions are also customizable, providing the ability to address unique business operations or industry-specific compliance obligations. Cloud ERP deployments enable added mobility and scalability, allowing you to add or remove users as headcount changes.

Don’t let outdated software stifle growth, give your business room to grow by deploying a comprehensive ERP solution. Contact WatServ for more information about replacing basic software, with a flexible, agile ERP solution that can grow and change with your business.

WatServ demonstrates best-in-class capability and market leadership through proven technology and customer commitment.​

About

WatServ is an IT solutions provider that helps organizations digitally transform through cloud technologies and managed services.

Serving clients as a trusted advisor since 2006, WatServ provides experience-tested, strategic solutions across all stages of the digital transformation journey. Clients choose WatServ to migrate infrastructure and applications to the cloud, secure critical data, implement disaster recovery, deploy virtual desktop, enable data-readiness for productivity solutions and manage IT environments.

Our clients span a broad range of industries, and we’re a global supplier of IT services for many Brookfield Portfolio Companies. To help our mid-size clients, we provide scalable offerings that simplify cloud adoption and drive business optimization. For enterprise clients, we co-create cloud solutions that enable stability and efficiency for complex IT tools and processes.

With more than 15 years of experience, WatServ has a track record of delivering quantifiable business results and a superior client experience. Ranked as one of Canada’s Top 100 Solution Providers for the last three years in a row, WatServ is always on.

Blog Posts

More Posts from the WatServ Team.