Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

If you missed our March NET+ AWS Tech Jam, you missed a thought-provoking conversation about how leading institutions are completely rethinking their approach to cloud provisioning. Penn State University's journey from manual processes to cloud automation sparked insights that could reshape how your institution empowers researchers and students while maintaining financial control.

Beyond the "Build It and They Will Come" Fallacy

The discussion quickly moved past outdated cloud provisioning philosophies to reveal a fundamental truth: successful cloud environments start with understanding what users actually need, not what IT thinks they might want.

Shane Heivly from Penn State University described their eye-opening shift from what he called "2018-style manual provisioning" to a more sophisticated user-centric approach. This isn't just about technical workflows—it's about transforming how institutions conceptualize their relationship with cloud resources.

"The backwards approach is critical," noted one participant. "When you understand what researchers and graduate students truly need to accomplish, you design systems that actually get used rather than bypassed."

Solving the Higher Ed "Snowflake" Challenge

What makes the academic environment so challenging for cloud administrators is the extraordinary diversity of use cases. From high-performance computing clusters processing climate models to AI workloads analyzing literary texts, every research group presents unique requirements.

Rather than attempting to build one-size-fits-none solutions, forward-thinking institutions are creating flexible provisioning frameworks that:

  • Recognize different levels of cloud maturity among users
  • Provide appropriate guardrails without stifling innovation
  • Integrate with familiar campus systems like ServiceNow
  • Scale to accommodate growing demands

The Financial Control Breakthrough

Perhaps the most compelling part of the discussion centered on how automated provisioning is revolutionizing financial control—without creating administrative bottlenecks.

Early adopters have implemented sophisticated tagging strategies that enable granular cost attribution while empowering users with real-time visibility into their spending. Rather than discovering runaway costs at month's end, institutions now deploy automated monitoring tools that can alert users or even shut down idle resources based on predefined policies.

One participant described how their institution reduced unexpected cloud expenses by 73% in just four months using this approach—while actually increasing cloud adoption rates.

From Theoretical to Practical: Implementation Insights

What separated this Tech Jam from typical cloud discussions was the practical implementation roadmap that emerged. Participants shared specific tactics for overcoming common obstacles:

The "vending machine" concept emerged as a particularly compelling model, where users can self-service their cloud needs within appropriate boundaries. Rather than attempting to build comprehensive solutions immediately, participants advocated for starting with minimal viable products focused on common use cases, then expanding based on actual usage patterns.

Identity and access management strategies proved to be a critical foundation, balancing user autonomy with institutional security requirements through thoughtfully designed permission structures.

Building the Community Knowledge Base

The most valuable aspect of the Tech Jam was the rich exchange of real-world experiences that transcended vendor talking points. Participants shared struggles, successes, and everything in between—creating a knowledge base far more valuable than any white paper.

Multiple institutions shared how they've adapted their existing IT service management platforms to support cloud provisioning, allowing them to leverage familiar workflows rather than creating entirely new processes.

Making It Real on Your Campus

Ready to transform your cloud provisioning? The community highlighted several practical next steps:

  • Arrange a consultation with your AWS Solutions Architect to evaluate your current provisioning approach
  • Join the upcoming hands-on workshop series focused specifically on implementation strategies
  • Connect with peer institutions through the Internet2 NET+ AWS community forums
  • Access the shared resource repository containing sample workflows, policies, and lessons learned

The March Tech Jam reinforced that cloud provisioning isn't just a technical challenge—it's fundamentally about enabling research and education while maintaining appropriate controls. By focusing on user needs first and building iteratively, institutions are creating cloud environments that truly meet the unique demands of higher education. Here is the recording for you to view on-demand (unfortunately, due to user error, the recording started half way through).

Don't miss next month's NET+ AWS event. Take a look at our calendar for upcoming events that you might be interested in. These monthly sessions continue to bring together innovative thinkers in higher education cloud computing to solve real-world challenges.

Be sure to check out the other blog posts we've written. As always, feel free to send any feedback to tmanik[at]internet2[dot]edu.