How do you build a FinOps practice that actually engages engineers, delivers business value, and grows with the help of the community?

In this episode of FinOps in Action, I sat down with Swapna Samuel, Head of FinOps and Clarity Business Management at BMO and FinOps Foundation Ambassador, to explore how culture, collaboration, and community have been key drivers in her FinOps journey.

Swapna shares how joining the FinOps Foundation helped her avoid common pitfalls, why engaging engineers with transparency and the “why” is crucial, and how BMO uses office hours to create a safe space for collaboration. She also dives into her passion topic: business value — why cost alone isn’t the full picture, and how to build KPIs that truly measure impact.

Here’s what we talked about:

• How the FinOps Foundation community accelerates success

• Tips for engaging engineers and explaining the “why”

• Creating FinOps office hours to share wins and stories

• Moving from cost savings to business value in FinOps

• Building culture and collaboration inside a financial institution

If you're trying to scale a FinOps practice, engage engineering teams, and reduce cloud waste—this conversation is packed with insights you can use right now.

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Quote of the Show:

• "When someone says you're not building something right, [to engineers] that is kind of offensive. And so, I think that's where the messaging needs to change, right? It's not that engineers are not building things right, it's how do we build it to maximize value?" - Swapna Samuel

Links:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/swapna-samuel-792745111/
• Website: http://www.bmo.com/

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