MarketScale
ContributorsSteven Dickens
Steven Dickens photo

Vice President and Practice Leader

Steven Dickens

STEVEN DICKENS MISSION To work with organisations globally to provide thought leadership, content and advisory services so they can address the challenges and opportunities that a digital world presents. PRACTICE COVERAGE Public Cloud IaaS; AWS, Azure, GCP, OCI and IBM Cloud as well as public cloud connected compute such as Outpost, Satellite, Stack and Cloud-at-Customer, this focus also includes containers, K8S, Cloud-native orchestration & Virtualisation Operations Software; Log management, automation, observability, and console reporting. Servers & Compute including; x86, UNIX, Mainframe, HPC and Hyper-Converged infrastructure Open Source: Linux Operating systems and Open-Source tooling and operations software. Mainframe Ecosystem including hardware, software, service providers and outsourcers. WHO STEVEN WORK WITH With 25+ years of experience in cloud, hardware, services and software along across multiple industries, he engages with senior leaders in large organisations, new emerging vendors and the major Tech vendors to define strategy and provide engaging content and advisory services.

2 articlesLinkedIn ↗X ↗
Contributor Brief·Steven Dickens · 2 articles
Updated Aug 9, 2023

Standardizing analytics across clouds reduces fragmentation costs

Dickens argues that multi-cloud fragmentation—where organizations deploy different analytics platforms for each cloud provider—creates unnecessary complexity and operational drag. He advocates for horizontal standardization across data ecosystems as the primary lever to reduce costs, accelerate insights, and simplify governance in distributed cloud environments.

70%

of businesses use different analytics platforms per cloud

Businesses utilizing multi-cloud platforms face significant challenges in efficiently extracting data and insights.

Struggling with Managing Multi-Cloud Platforms (software and technology)

Impact of multi-cloud fragmentation on operations

Increased time consumption from platform switching8
Complexity from fragmented data ecosystems8
Cost inefficiency from redundant analytics tools7
Reduced decision-making speed across platforms7

SHARE

27%Increased time
Increased time consumption from platform switching
Complexity from fragmented data ecosystems
Cost inefficiency from redundant analytics tools
Reduced decision-making speed across platforms

200+

decision-makers surveyed in UK & Ireland by SAS

Organizations managing multiple cloud platforms can reduce complexity and costs by standardizing analytics.

Struggling with Managing Multi-Cloud Platforms (engineering and construction)

Finding horizontal threads across your data ecosystem unlocks efficiency at scale.

Core recommendation from SAS report

Fragmented cloud platforms are not inevitable—standardization is the path forward.

Themes:Multi-cloud fragmentation as hidden operational taxHorizontal standardization as consolidation strategyData ecosystem integration across vendor boundaries

Community

0 posts
No posts yet. Be the first to ask a question or share an idea with Steven Dickens.
  • AM
    Alex M.·2h agoquestion

    What sparked your research into disruptive innovation?

    Curious what the original insight was that led you to the Innovator's Dilemma framework.

  • SL
    Sophia L.·1d agoidea

    Would love a deep-dive into EdTech adoption barriers.

    Your framing of sustaining vs. disruptive innovation feels directly applicable to school systems.

  • DR
    David R.·3d agoquestion

    How do you see AI changing the personalized learning landscape?