I used to be excited to talk at a regional cloud computing summit hosted by one of many main cloud suppliers. My presentation centered on the numerous alternatives of public cloud and the important want for threat administration. Simply earlier than the occasion, I acquired an e mail stating that three of my slides, which mentioned cloud outages and the dangers of over-reliance on suppliers, needed to be eliminated. Mentioning failures didn’t align with the host’s narrative of reliability.
Pissed off however not stunned, I eliminated the slides. Throughout my presentation, I highlighted the significance of getting ready for outages, disruptions, and different potential dangers. I shared real-life incidents, resembling main outages at high suppliers, that demonstrated how companies unprepared for third-party failures can face vital monetary, operational, and reputational injury. The viewers’s response was combined. Some nodded, clearly understanding the dangers. Others, together with occasion organizers on the again, appeared uneasy. Unsurprisingly, I haven’t been invited once more.
Right here’s the reality: Managing threat isn’t about doubting the effectiveness of cloud suppliers—it’s about making certain resilience when the surprising occurs. If sharing that message makes folks uncomfortable, I do know I’m doing my job.
