What it means
It includes rightsizing, scheduling, commitment management, storage lifecycle decisions, architecture changes, and removal of unused resources. Optimization is not simply spending less.
Why it matters
Cost is an architectural and operational signal. Persistent waste can indicate weak ownership, poor automation, overprovisioning, or unclear service value.
Practical focus
- Assign owners and budgets to cloud resources
- Review utilization and commitment coverage regularly
- Include cost effects in architecture and change reviews
Common mistakes
- Cutting redundancy that protects service objectives
- Optimizing one bill while shifting cost to labor or risk
- Treating a one-time cleanup as a sustained practice
Certification relevance
This subject appears in or supports the following certification bodies of knowledge: