FinOps Engineer - W2

The Cloud FinOps/Financial Engineer will support the Cloud Business Office & Cloud Engineering Teams by establishing cloud financial strategy and architecture. In this role the individual will be establishing cloud cost budgets using the tools and techniques available from AWS Azure and Oracle Cloud. They will be responsible for establishing in close coordination with MH Finance office cost allocation and assessments for attribution back to cost centers. The principal daily activity will be a detailed and continual analysis of assets costs looking to areas of cost savings defined by either waste inefficiency or architectural opportunity.

This individual will be working extensively in CloudHealth Apptio Cost Explorer and other financial management tools and will coordinate with the Rackspace Optimizer team to identify areas of waste or optimization across the AWS cloud footprint. They will administer the perspectives in CloudHealth and work with their peers in Cloud Engineering to ensure proper reports and improved understanding of cost areas and opportunities for cost reduction/optimization across our multicloud footprint.

Responsibilities:

Primary responsibilities include all activities related to cloud financial management and analysis support. These responsibilities include but are not limited to:

CFM Strategy & Architecture

• Evaluate the cloud hosting cost proposals analyze past performance on cost control on similar procurements; use of standards and/or other quantitative techniques in producing like or similar items. Review the adequacy and soundness of the proposals for compliance with cost accounting standards (CAS). Identify cost impact of accounting system changes or noncompliance based on information provided by auditors or agency. Document findings to allow the ability and allocability of costs based on such reviews.
• Coordinate with key stakeholders and counterparts to facilitate efforts throughout the SDLC cycle with respect to the development and integration of those efforts.
• Support the development of cloud transition schedules and coordinate with key stakeholders and counterparts to facilitate efforts.
• Coordinate change management activities in accordance with the technology operating model and transition plan.
• Contribute to education delivery equipping stakeholders with understanding for cost management practices.

Budgeting & Cost Allocation

• Create and manage budgets for cloud spending taking into account organizational goals and growth projections.
• Develop methods for allocating cloud costs to different business units platforms portfolios and products enabling chargeback or showback mechanisms.
• Contribute to yearly DPG financial budget process for cloud hosting and third party software spend

Cost Optimization and Forecasting

• Lead planning discussions and project reviews to align on the financial impact of R&D initiatives providing key inputs such as the infrastructure forecasting and related margin impact
• Collaborate with FinOps and Engineering to track and monitor cost optimization initiatives ensuring key initiative assumptions are accurate and applicable infrastructure efficiencies are incorporated into the forecast
• Engage with the business to execute on multiyear forecasting of infrastructure spend
• Conduct indepth cost analysis to identify cost drivers and areas for improvement.
• Monitor ongoing cloud expenses and identify costsaving opportunities such as unused or underutilized resources in AWS console.
• Track progress against EBIDTA targets for ongoing cloud hosting charges

Commercial Software Agreements

• Continually analyze asset consumption in AWS and collaborate with DevSecOPs teams to establish future migration/consumption patterns of asset types. Use this information to purchase Reserved Instances and continually monitor/act upon usage/coverage information to establish ROI.
• Collaborate with AWS and Senior Leadership to create and refine EDP discounts.
• Seek out and look for opportunities to engage in private rate discounts where volume licensing is preferred

Reporting & Insights

• Conduct analytical reviews on various cloud cost elements such as material labor and profit to determine the reasonableness of the various cost elements. Prepare a cost/price analysis report of conclusions reached for contracts involving complex requirements.
• Assist with the development of key briefings information papers and presentations for senior leaders to inform critical decisions on investment strategies.
• Generate regular reports and dashboards to provide visibility into cloud spending and cost trends.
• Leverage visualization and mapping tools such as Tableau and Excel to conduct analysis produce charts/graphs and support partner/internal engagements

Qualifications

• Associates degree (preferably in business administration economics engineering or management information systems) or higher
• Minimum of two years of experience in IT financial management or FinOps Minimum of two years cloud engineering or systems administration of cloud assets
• Minimum of three years of analytical experience preferably in the field of cost analysis data visualization data creation or computer science.
• Five years of cost/ acquisition experience is required.
• Extensive experience with Microsoft Office products with an emphasis on Excel (particularly the use of PivotTables).
• Strong Communication skills with an emphasis on technical writing and writing cost reports