Cloud tags are a highly effective tool for managing cloud assets in AWS, Azure, and other cloud services. The cloud tag is metadata (data about data), user-defined, and a key/value pair. Examples of a cloud tag are Environment / Production or Department / Finance.
What can you do with cloud tags? Anything you want! And therein lies the problem. Most companies and articles describe using cloud tags to track usage and chargebacks. But there is significantly more value that can be realized if you develop an ITAM cloud tagging strategy.
An ITAM cloud tagging strategy represents the interests of multiple departments. Interested parties go beyond finance and include IT, IT security, project management, compliance, and the departments who are charged for their use of cloud resources. For this reason, the cloud tagging strategy, not necessarily the implementation, should be owned by ITAM.
Creating a cloud tagging strategy is very similar to creating IT standards:
- Create a cloud asset tagging standards committee that includes a representative from each department
- Develop naming standards
- Identify the needs of each party and define the tags. For example, IT security may wish to tag resources that access confidential data.
- Identify the tools that need to support cloud tags and any gaps in that support
- Design the reports that are generated from the tag data
- Identify who applies the tags, when the tags are applied, and how the tags are applied
- Determine how tagging is monitored to ensure all cloud assets are tagged
- Develop a training program for those who are assigned the tagging role
- Define a process for reviewing and normalizing tag names
- Schedule reoccurring reviews of the tag names, the value and accuracy of the reports, and tagging compliance
Cloud tags require a successful ITAM program like any other IT asset tags.
But keep in mind the cloud tag is just one of many capabilities in an ITAM program. The entire cloud asset’s lifecycle must be managed to have a successful cloud asset management program. A cloud tagging strategy is a great place to start.
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