How do you move from chasing $15 cloud savings to building a scalable FinOps program that actually drives impact?

In this episode of FinOps in Action, I sit down with Chandan Bukkapatnam, Senior Cloud FinOps Analyst at Procore Technologies, to unpack what it really takes to mature a FinOps practice from tactical cost-cutting to strategic influence.

Chandan shares how he intentionally built his career at the intersection of cloud architecture and finance, why he initially focused too heavily on granular optimizations, and how automation changed everything. He explains why small “one-off” savings often waste engineering time, and how building systems is what truly scales cloud cost optimization.

The conversation also explores one of the most important skills in FinOps: influencing without authority. Chandan breaks down how to build trust with engineers, secure leadership buy-in, and meet finance and engineering teams where they are, using the language that matters to each.

Finally, the episode dives into the future of FinOps in an AI-driven world. From FinOps for AI workloads to AI for FinOps automation, Chandan shares how he sees artificial intelligence amplifying the practitioner’s role.

 Here’s what we talked about:

• Why focusing on tiny cloud savings can backfire
• How to prioritize high-impact cloud cost optimization
• Building automation workflows that scale
• Gaining leadership buy-in for FinOps initiatives
• FinOps for AI vs. AI for FinOps
• The evolving strategic role of FinOps practitioners

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Quote of the Show:

• “ AI is taking over the world… but context is still number one.” - Chandan Bukkapatnam

Links:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chandan426/ 
• Website: https://www.procore.com/ 

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