A guest post by Beth Woodruff, Director of IT Operations Excellence at PerfectServe.
“The Aimably team answered all of our questions with so many layers of knowledge and skill. It really felt like a white glove experience.”
The Challenge: A Costly EDP Commitment and the Need for Internal Expertise
When I joined PerfectServe, our new CTO and I inherited an underperforming Year 1 of a three year Enterprise Discount Program (EDP), which locked us into spending more on the cloud than we were actually using. The issue wasn’t our team—our Platform group was small but highly capable. Instead, the challenge was the framework we were working within.
Historically, PerfectServe had relied on third-party tools and outsourced cost management rather than embedding cost awareness into our engineering processes. That approach wasn’t sustainable. We wanted to empower our teams to make cost-conscious decisions in real time, not just react when an invoice came in.
At the same time, our private equity partners were highly engaged in our efficiency efforts. They encouraged us to work with Aimably, which initially felt redundant given our existing knowledge. But we quickly realized this wasn’t about offloading cost optimization—it was about building a lasting FinOps discipline within our team.
The Solution: Developing a FinOps Mindset
Rather than just delivering a list of savings opportunities, Aimably helped us think differently about cost efficiency. They provided a methodical approach to understanding our cloud spend, aligning costs with business goals, and making smarter infrastructure decisions.
What Worked Well:
- Access to deep expertise. Every call included a wide range of technical and financial experts who could answer our most nuanced questions. This was critical for bridging the gap between theoretical best practices and our actual architecture.
- A shift in mindset. The real value came from embedding cost awareness across our team, not just reacting to reports. We stopped thinking of FinOps as an after-the-fact optimization exercise and started approaching it as a proactive design principle.
- Preparation for future EDP negotiations. By the time we wrapped up Year 3 of our reseller-based EDP, we were ready to negotiate a direct deal with AWS, on our terms.
While not every recommendation was an exact fit for our environment, Aimably took the time to deeply understand our architecture. That level of detail gave me the confidence to push past the natural resistance that comes with any change, ensuring we made decisions based on data rather than hesitation.
The Results: A Stronger Foundation for Growth
- We’ve built a culture of cost accountability. Cloud cost management is no longer an outsourced task—it’s part of how we operate.
- Our cloud governance is stronger. Spending is now an intentional business decision, not just an afterthought.
- With the right people and processes in place, we’re in control of our future, ready to scale efficiently with a cost-efficient, growth-ready cloud strategy.
Advice for Other FinOps Leaders
If you’re in a similar position—tasked with reducing cloud costs while supporting growth—my biggest takeaway is:
“Get all the facts laid out in front of you. Work from a place of data so you can clearly understand your starting point and work towards a well-defined end state. Circumstances are always evolving—especially in the cloud.”
At PerfectServe, we’ve built a foundation that ensures long-term financial discipline, operational stability, and a cloud strategy designed to support our business goals.
