Cloud Governance Analyst - Reading/Windsor

Job Details

Business Job Title

Cloud Governance Analyst

Job Overview

Purpose Statement

This role supports Vodafone cloud-first strategy by enabling effective cloud governance across product and platform teams. It ensures cloud environments are secure, compliant, cost-effective, and aligned to organisational goals by embedding governance controls into cloud delivery, partnering closely with engineering, architecture, FinOps, and business stakeholders, and driving continuous improvement in cloud maturity and efficiency.

Accountabilities

• Cloud Governance Ownership: Partner with Cloud Engineering and Architecture to define, own, and execute Vodafone's cloud governance strategy, ensuring alignment with organisational objectives, regulatory requirements, and industry best practices.
• Risk Identification and Mitigation: Identify risks and vulnerabilities across the cloud estate, proactively designing and implementing mitigation measures. Work closely with business areas to ensure appropriate controls and remediation actions are established and Embedded.
• Service Performance and Assurance: Collaborate with stakeholders and internal teams to define, implement, and continuously improve Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), strengthening the overall governance, resilience, and security posture of cloud environments.
• FinOps Partnership: Work closely with FinOps to ensure effective cost control measures and policies are in place. Support cost optimisation and efficiency initiatives, and enable FinOps shift-left practices through effective integration and operation of tooling such as Infracost.
• Standards and Policy Enforcement: Ensure adherence to established cloud standards, principles, and best practices, promoting a consistent, secure, and compliant cloud environment across Vodafone.
• Governance Guardrails: Collaborate with Cloud Engineering to design, implement, and enforce cloud governance policies and guardrails, ensuring cloud investments comply with internal controls and external regulatory requirements.
• Cloud Front Door Enablement: Facilitate the cloud front door process, ensuring stakeholder requirements are effectively triaged and connected to the appropriate delivery and platform teams.
• Maturity Assessment and Continuous Improvement: With support from suppliers and stakeholders, coordinate regular cloud platform maturity assessments, providing recommendations to improve governance effectiveness, operational efficiency, and platform capability.
• Automation and Operational Efficiency: Identify manual and repetitive governance activities (eg chasing actions, raising risks) and seek opportunities to automate processes, improving efficiency, reducing errors, and ensuring consistent application of governance standards.

By effectively governing Vodafone's cloud investments, this role will play a critical part in improving security, efficiency, compliance, and cost-effectiveness across the organisation. The role offers the opportunity to operate at the intersection of cloud engineering, architecture, finance, and risk, contributing directly to Vodafone's success in a fast-paced and evolving technology landscape.

Competencies and Qualifications

Competencies

• Strong understanding of cloud computing models and deployment patterns, including IaaS, PaaS, SaaS, and public, private, and hybrid cloud environments.
• Solid knowledge of cloud governance principles, including the design and application of policies, standards, guardrails, and controls to support secure, compliant, and efficient cloud usage.
• Experience identifying cloud risks and vulnerabilities, with the ability to support proportionate risk mitigation and compliance activities in collaboration with engineering, security, and business teams.
• Working knowledge of regulatory, risk, and assurance requirements relevant to cloud environments, including audit support and evidence-based control assessment.
• Understanding of FinOps principles and cloud cost governance, with the ability to work alongside FinOps teams to support cost control, optimisation, efficiency, and shift-left cost visibility.
• Experience working within a product-led, platform-based operating model, understanding how governance, risk, reliability, and cost controls are Embedded into platform roadmaps, product life cycles, and continuous delivery practices.
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills, able to build effective relationships across technical and non-technical teams and guide adoption of good cloud governance practices.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to assess governance processes, identify gaps or inefficiencies, and recommend pragmatic improvements.
• Highly organised and delivery-focused, able to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment and identify opportunities to automate manual governance activities to improve efficiency and consistency.

Education

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience in a relevant discipline such as:
  • Computer Science
  • Information Technology
  • Engineering
  • Information Systems
  • Business, Technology, or Risk Management
  • Equivalent practical experience in cloud platforms, governance, or platform operations will be considered in place of formal qualifications.

Work Experience

• Experience working within large, complex organisations, operating across multiple business units and platform teams to support effective cloud governance, risk management, and consistent application of standards.
• Strong hands-on experience with cloud platforms and cost management tooling, supporting cost transparency, optimisation, and efficient use of cloud resources in line with organisational objectives.
• Proven ability to advise, influence, and collaborate with diverse stakeholders, including engineering, architecture, finance, security, and business teams, to embed cloud governance best practices.
• Experience supporting the execution of cloud and platform strategies, enabling teams to operate within agreed governance frameworks while continuously improving efficiency, risk posture, and cost effectiveness.
• Exposure to product-led and agile ways of working, contributing to delivery cadence, prioritisation, and continuous improvement within platform or cloud governance initiatives.

Certifications

• AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner: Foundational knowledge of AWS cloud services and governance.
• Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals: Core understanding of Azure cloud services and governance practices.
• Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP): Focuses on cloud security, governance, and risk management.
• ITIL 4 Foundation: Knowledge of IT service management and governance frameworks.
• Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC): Specializes in IT risk management and governance.

Travel Requirements

Occasional travel to remote sites and partner training events.

Job Dimensions

Strategic Input

Long-Term (sets strategic direction over 3+ years)

Key Stakeholders &

Working Relationships

• Day to day working relationships with product and platform delivery teams.
• Cloud Architecture
• FinOps
• Security, Risk and Assurance Teams
• Virtual, Cross-functional teams.