Episode 44 Larry Advey - Leveraging FOCUS for Stakeholder Management

Larry Advey discusses the significance of standardizing FinOps nomenclature through the FOCUS (FinOps Cost and Usage Specification) project to streamline communication across multi-provider environments. Larry shares his insights on the impact of FOCUS in reducing confusion among stakeholders by creating a unified language for billing data. The episode also highlights Larry’s experiences from recent FinOps events, upcoming plans for FinOpsX, and the importance of engaging with the community for continuous improvement.

00:00 Welcome to FinOpsPod

01:25 January Recap and FinOpsX Planning

06:28 Focus Project and Stakeholder Management

09:36 The Role of a Focus Maintainer

16:23 The Vision for Focus

20:11 Exploring FOCUS Nomenclature

21:09 Utilizing the FOCUS Sandbox

21:32 Diving into Use Cases

22:49 Navigating the Focus Website

29:12 Engaging with the FinOps Community

34:24 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

• FinOps X 2025 - The Home of FinOps
• FOCUS Sandbox
• FOCUS™ - FinOps Open Cost & Usage Specification
• Larry Advey | LinkedIn

Episode 43 FinOpsPod Year End 2024

In this episode, hosts, Joe & Stacy, with special guest Sam Benson, highlight significant events like the successful FinOps X and FinOps X Europe conferences, community growth, and the evolution of FinOps practices. The episode wraps up with reflections on the past year's achievements and aspirations for 2025, encouraging practitioners to stay engaged and keep learning.

00:00 Welcome to FinOpsPod!

00:28 Meet the Hosts and Special Guest

01:11 Year-End Reflections

02:45 Sam's Role and Contributions

05:49 Community Events and Highlights

08:44 FinOps X and Memorable Moments

10:18 The 'No Runners' Theme

11:56 Adapting and Evolving in FinOps

14:08 Is Rob a Master Gardener?

15:58 Highlights from FinOpsX Europe

18:05 FinOps Scopes and Expanding Roles

20:05 Focus and Community Engagement

22:47 Emerging Topics and AI

25:38 Looking Forward to 2025

30:49 Closing Remarks and Holiday Wishes

• FinOps X 2025 - The Home of FinOps
• The Scope of FinOps Extends Beyond Public Cloud

Episode 42 James Barney - The AI Episode

James Barney discusses the complexities and nuances of applying FinOps principles to AI usage in the cloud, explores various models of AI consumption, such as SaaS and self-hosted solutions, and delves into the challenges of accurately tracking and managing AI costs. Insights are shared from James Barney's recently contributed paper on AI cost management, emphasizing the importance of understanding AI's impact on cloud expenditures and business value. The conversation also touches on the necessity of open dialogue within organizations and the potential for AI to enhance non-customer-facing processes. Practical advice is given on how to approach AI cost management conversations and the value of learning by doing.

Note - views expressed by James are his alone and not those of his employer.

03:59 Understanding AI Cost Structures

05:38 FinOps Strategies for AI Workloads

12:10 Balancing Innovation and Cost Control

18:08 Tracking and Reporting AI Costs

19:34 Understanding AI Workloads

21:39 Guardrails for AI Usage

22:45 The Role of Context in AI

25:16 Politeness in AI Interactions

28:03 Exploring AI Tokens

31:35 Challenges in AI Cost Management

35:41 Community Involvement in AI

• James Barney | LinkedIn
• Cost Estimation of AI Workloads
• How to Forecast AI Services Costs in Cloud
• How to Build a Generative AI Cost and Usage Tracker