The 2024 revisions to the FinOps Framework signify a monumental step forward in aligning activities with current best practices embraced by the FinOps community. These updates, shaped by the invaluable experience sharing from and global community members, empower practitioners to navigate complexity, optimize resources, and drive value with confidence. We are committed to support organizations in developing and maturing their FinOps practices. We believe that these updates will serve as a valuable resource for practitioners striving for excellence in Cloud Financial Management. Therefore, we are thrilled to share with you the latest advancements in the FinOps Framework of the FinOps Foundation which can, combined with our extensive experience, maximize your business value of cloud.

The 2024 Revision Highlights

Let us show the highlights to you. If you are interested in how the FinOps Framework looked before, you can have a look at appendix 1, which shows the evolution of the Framework.

1. Changed Definition

Reflecting the community’s transition from a cost-centric approach to a value-driven mindset, the definition of FinOps has been refined. This update acknowledges the expansion of FinOps beyond Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) to encompass other variable cloud costs, ensuring alignment with current practices.

2. Personas Updates

First, an important remark about the personas. They now represent areas of FinOps activity rather than role titles. This indicates that around (for example) Finance, you should have a persona, or multiple, who have integrated the FinOps way-of-working. By identifying and involving people in persona categories rather than individuals or job roles, our customers can make the implementation of FinOps practices more efficient. This targeted approach ensures that the right people are empowered to drive FinOps initiatives forward, leading to more efficient and effective outcomes.

To foster collaboration within organizations, personas have been newly updated in 2024. They are categorized into Core and Allied Personas. Core personas remain directly involved in FinOps practices, while Allied Personas represent roles intersecting with FinOps practitioners from various disciplines, which matches much better with what we see in practise at our customers.

In essence, the updated persona structure empowers your company with:

• Broader Expertise: We see, with Allied personas representing roles from various disciplines intersecting with FinOps, our customers gain access to a broader range of expertise and perspectives. This diversity of knowledge allows for more comprehensive problem-solving and innovation within FinOps practices.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: The inclusion of Allied personas fosters a culture of collaboration across departments. Core personas, who are directly involved in FinOps practices, can work together more effectively with allied personas, leveraging their expertise to address complex challenges and drive initiatives forward.

• Holistic Integration: The synergy between Core and Allied personas ensures that FinOps practices are integrated holistically into our customers operations. By involving stakeholders from different disciplines, it can be ensured that FinOps principles are applied consistently and effectively throughout the organization, leading to more seamless integration and alignment with business objectives.

• Increased Flexibility: The expanded persona structure allows for greater flexibility in adapting FinOps practices to the unique needs and challenges of your organization. With a wider range of roles represented, our customers can tailor FinOps initiatives more precisely to address specific areas of concern and capitalize on opportunities for improvement.

• Warning or Challenge: Expanding FinOps persona’s increases communication, knowledge, and skill complexity. To navigate this, FinOps practitioner’s must continuously champion FinOps principles through clear communication and personal example. Collaboration is key.

3. Domains Updates

In adopting the revised FinOps framework with its simplified domains from six to four, companies stand to gain significant advantages. By condensing the domains to focus on understanding, quantifying, optimizing, and managing cloud operations, you are poised to enhance your approach to FinOps in several keyways. Firstly, the streamlined domains provide us with clear and focused objectives, ensuring that FinOps efforts are simplified to better align with core business goals. This newfound clarity enables you to prioritize activities more effectively, directing our resources towards initiatives that drive maximum value for your organization. Moreover, the emphasis on these core outcomes facilitates better communication between the personas. The simplified domains make it is easier to convey the purpose and benefits of FinOps practices to stakeholders at all levels, fostering greater understanding and support for FinOps initiatives throughout the organization.

In essence, the transition to simplified domains in the FinOps framework empowers your company to achieve greater clarity, alignment, and efficiency in your FinOps practice.

4. Capabilities Additions

Seven new capabilities are added to address various aspects of modern cloud financial management. These are:

• Licensing & SaaS Management: This capability guides organizations in optimizing costs associated with software licenses and cloud-based subscriptions.
• Security & Compliance FinOps: This capability focuses on managing the financial impact of security and compliance measures in the cloud.
• Cloud Cost Optimization Tools: This capability highlights the role of specialized tools in automating tasks and gaining insights for cost optimization.
• FinOps for Innovation: This capability addresses integrating FinOps practices into the software development lifecycle to promote cost-conscious innovation.
• Data Management FinOps: This capability tackles the specific cost challenges associated with managing data in the cloud.
• FinOps for Sustainability: This capability explores aligning cloud usage with environmental sustainability goals.
• FinOps Measurement: This capability emphasizes establishing metrics to track the effectiveness of FinOps practices.

These new capabilities increase the scope of FinOps and provides extra added business value because of the expanding coordination in the IT landscape of organizations. These updates reflect the evolving landscape of cloud operations, empowering practitioners to navigate complexity and drive value with confidence.

Read more about the changes on the FinOps Foundation website: FinOps Foundation Highlights

Implications for your company

The impact of these revisions stretches beyond mere framework adjustments — they have the power to redefine your company’s FinOps strategy. By embracing the updated FinOps Framework, we can help to:

1. Unlock Value: Shift the focus from mere cost optimization to maximizing business value, driving meaningful outcomes across your cloud operations.
2. Enhance Collaboration: Foster deeper collaboration between technology and business teams, ensuring alignment and synergy in your cloud management efforts.
3. Stay Agile: Adapt to the evolving landscape of cloud operations seamlessly, equipped with the latest best practices and insights from the FinOps community.

Embrace these changes to propel the company towards greater efficiency, innovation, and success in the cloud.

Conclusion

The Framework update provides an opportunity to step back, assess and adapt changes in your FinOps practice. Consider how you could benefit from these changes, take the ones that suit your organization and leave the changes that aren’t useful behind. The Framework is there to help you build the best practice you can build. Thanks to the FinOps Foundation for incorporating all the changes suggested by the countless practitioners that drive FinOps day in and day out in real life. Let’s keep evolving FinOps together.

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