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Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →The Linux Foundation announced the formation of the FinOps Foundation on August 20, 2020, to advance cloud financial management through shared practices, education and standards. The announcement named 11 founding members, outlined a council combining vendor and practitioner voices, and introduced partner, course and exam programs. Its membership counts and program descriptions are historical; they do not establish the Foundation’s current membership or offerings.
What did the FinOps Foundation announce?
The Linux Foundation’s August 20, 2020 announcement formalized the FinOps Foundation. An intent to form it had been made public at Open Source Summit North America in late June, according to the formation announcement.
The release presented the Foundation as a way to advance cloud financial management with best practices, education and standards. It named these 11 organizations as founding members:
- Apptio
- Cloudeasier
- Cloudsoft
- CloudWize
- Contino
- Kubecost
- Neos
- Opsani
- ProsperOps
- Timspirit
- VMware
These are the organizations named in the 2020 release, not a statement of current membership.
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What is FinOps in the announcement’s terms?
The release described FinOps as an operating model for cloud that combines systems, best practices and culture. Its purpose is to help organizations understand cloud costs and make informed business decisions. This framing emphasizes collaboration among technology, business and finance teams rather than treating cloud spending as a finance-only task.
How the model was meant to manage cloud costs
- Bring teams together: Technology, business and finance professionals share responsibility for understanding cloud spend.
- Connect costs to decisions: Accountability should sit closer to the people making purchasing decisions.
- Use central processes where useful: Shared processes can improve purchasing efficiency and help allocate costs to teams.
The announcement’s description is a snapshot of its 2020 framing, not a claim about any newer formal definition of FinOps.
Who was named to the initial Technical Advisory Council?
The release described a Technical Advisory Council with vendor-appointed representatives and practitioner seats. Its initial members were:
- Eugene Khvostov, VP of Product & Engineering at Apptio
- Matt Leonard, product management lead for Google Compute Cloud billing
- John McLoughlin, director of product management for CloudHealth by VMware
- Mike Fuller, principal systems engineer for FinOps at Atlassian
- Joseph Daly, director of cloud optimization at Nationwide
- Ashley Hromatko, senior manager of FinOps at Pearson
The charter called for a mix of appointed and elected members, including end-user practitioners who the release said would be added in the coming months. This describes the announced structure at formation; it does not establish present governance.
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What partner categories and education did the release introduce?
The announcement outlined three vetted partner categories. The lists below are launch-era participants as named in the 2020 release, not current endorsements or a current vendor shortlist.
FinOps Certified Platform
A pre-qualified category for technology providers offering software to support cloud financial management practices. The release named Apptio Cloudability, CloudHealth by VMware, CloudWize, Kubecost, Opsani and ProsperOps as launch partners.
FinOps Certified Service Provider
A pre-qualified category for providers offering FinOps support, consulting, professional services and training. Launch partners named were Apptio, Cloudeasier, Cloudsoft, Contino, Neos and Timspirit.
FinOps Training Partner
A selected group of vetted training providers. The release named Apptio, Cloudeasier, Contino and VMware as launch partners.
Course and exam
For member education, the announcement pointed to the free “Introduction to FinOps” course on edX, which had launched that summer, and the FinOps Certified Practitioner Exam. The release does not establish whether the course or exam remains available today.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What membership figures did the Linux Foundation report?
In its August 20, 2020 announcement, the Linux Foundation said the FinOps community had nearly 2,000 individual practitioner members around the world and represented more than 1,200 companies. The release provided no survey methodology or further breakdown for those counts, so they should be read as figures reported at launch, not current totals.
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