What is a cloud computing mindset?

The following outlines what we see as a cloud computing model mindset and contrasts with a traditional computing mindset:

• Operational Expenditure (OpEx) cost expenditure model.
• Usage versus provisioning; just-in-time, demand-driven provisioning.
• Cloud computing is designed to be elastic, scale in and out, and burst to meet demand.
• Consume and pay for what you use for as long as you need it when you need it; shut down or pause when you don’t.
• A microservices, loosely coupled, business logic-centric approach.
• A cloud-agnostic thought pattern.

This section looked at the cloud computing mindset. The following section looks at the concept of the cloud computing hierarchy of needs.

Cloud computing hierarchy of needs

The IT services delivery model can draw parallels to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs; this comes from a psychology theory, often represented in a hierarchical pyramid. In this model, the lower-level needs add no value or benefit, but each lower-level need must be met before the next-level needs can be met, leading to dependencies on the lower levels. The challenge is a very delicate balance in that any change in the lower levels affects the chances of success or failure of the required outcome; in this theory, the outcome to be achieved is self-actualization.

This idea can be applied to the IT services delivery model. In this model, the typical technology stack provides the outcome that needs to be met, such as an app, function, or code…:

• …this must exist on a lower layer of software…
• …which needs to live on a lower layer of compute…
• …which needs to exist on a lower layer of hardware…
• …which needs to exist in a physical facility…
• …which needs power, cooling, physical security, facilities management, staffing, and so on.

As with Maslow’s theory, the top-level needs depend on the lower levels being fulfilled.

With the traditional computing approach, a large amount of the budget is not used for innovating but just to keep the lights on. Resources and budget are trapped at the bottom, being used to procure hardware and invest in data center facilities, not being utilized or benefiting from being invested in the higher value-driver layers offering real value to the business. It is a CapEx constrained model, and technology is seen as a cost center to a business and not an innovation center for the business:

Figure 2.4 – Maslow’s hierarchy versus the cloud computing hierarchy of needs

The cloud computing model aims to re-balance resource utilization and budget, allowing the cloud services provider to spend their budget and use their resources on the hardware and lower layers. This means a business can ensure its time is more effectively spent at the top, innovating, and not at the bottom, maintaining. The goal is to move to a flexible and agile OpEx model, consuming only what is required from each layer down to deliver the business need and value-driven outcome.

This section looked at the cloud computing hierarchy of needs. The following section looks at the computing operating model, one of the key differentiators between traditional computing and cloud computing.