Behind the buzzword: What is a Cloud Center of Excellence?
Want to know what a CCoE is and if it’s something your organization needs? Here's what you need to know about it with no fluff, only facts.
Feb 26, 2026 • 3 Minute Read
In this edition of Behind the Buzzword, we cover a term that often comes up when it comes to cloud adoption and management: a Cloud Center of Excellence. Here's what you need to know about it, explained in a three minute read.
What is a Cloud Center of Excellence?
Using cloud technology in itself doesn’t drive cloud ROI. You also need people and processes to keep pace, or your investments stall. You also need champions to make sure it is rolled out and managed properly, often from many different business areas with varying skill sets. That’s where your Cloud Center of Excellence (CCoE) comes in.
A CCoE is a cross-functional team for driving cloud adoption, governance, and best practices within an organization. Aside from their substantive roles, they’re also charged with making sure cloud technology is used responsibly and effectively.
Who is typically in a Cloud Center of Excellence?
Technical experts with experience in cloud architecture, cloud engineering, security, and operations
Business analysts that help align the organization’s overall objectives and perspective to the CCoE
FinOps professionals that focus on the cost implications of cloud investment and ensure the organization is making informed financial decisions
Legal and compliance professionals to help to manage risk associated with cloud investments
HR professionals to provide guidance on skills and training needed to successfully utilize cloud and make sure that the culture is aligned with cloud adoption
Innovation experts to drive a forward-thinking approach and new opportunities for cloud investment
What are the benefits of a CCoE?
Streamlined cloud adoption and governance
Strategic alignment of your cloud investments
Team collaboration and enhanced customer experience
Improved cloud security and risk mitigation
Cost optimization
Enhanced cloud skills and knowledge sharing
Continuous cloud improvement and innovation
Learning more about CCoE frameworks
Rather than give a prescriptive answer, it’s best to learn more about what a CCoE actually is, then come to a conclusion based on your organization’s size and priorities. For example, a small organization with a centralized IT function and low cloud investment isn't going to need a full-blown CCoE, but a larger organization about to embark on an expensive cloud adoption journey very likely would.
For starters, I’d start by watching Lars Klint’s Cloud Transformation learning path, which includes a specific course delving into CCoE’s. The learning path was made specifically to help IT leaders and decision makers to master all the important elements of cloud adoption, and Lars is fantastic at breaking down the topic into easily digestible videos.
There are also resources available from major cloud providers that offer some CCoE best practices and possible structures for your organization:
AWS’s “Building a Cloud Center of Excellence within your organization.”
Google Cloud’s “How to build a better cloud center of excellence.”
Conclusion
Yes, this edition of Behind the Buzzword was short but sweet! Hopefully from this article, you’ve got a bit more understanding of what a CCoE is, and you now have some additional resources you can use to investigate it as a framework for your organization.
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