Cloud Direct will enters its tenth year as an approved G-Cloud provider in 2025, having today been approved for the new G-Cloud 14 framework.
The framework – which was established by the Crown Commercial Service to provide a digital marketplace for public sector organisations and agencies to find approved technical partners – was first created in 2012, with Cloud Direct first achieving its status three years later.
G-Cloud 14 goes live on 9 November 2024 and marks the ninth framework that Cloud Direct has been approved for, having grown its capabilities and service offerings since first featuring on G-Cloud 6.
Cloud Direct, which is listed on the framework under its legal name On Direct Business Services Limited, now has 11 approved products and services across the Cloud Hosting and Cloud Support lots.
Cloud Hosting (Lot 1)
- Microsoft Cloud Service Provider for Azure and Microsoft 365
Cloud Support (Lot 3)
- Azure Planning and Migration
- Azure Managed Service
- Application Modernisation
- DevOps
- Security Planning and Migration
- Securing Managed Service
- Modern Work Planning and Migration
- Modern Work Managed Service
- Data and AI Planning and Migration
- Data Managed Service
Cloud Direct’s G-Cloud 14 approval is the latest renewal of one of the business’ long-standing accreditations, having recently been named as an Azure Expert Managed Service Provider for the eighth consecutive year, alongside its other Microsoft Solution Designations and Specialisations.
Brett Raynes, Cloud Direct’s Founder and CEO, said:
“Our mission is to help ambitious organisations grow better, and the renewal of our G-Cloud status ensures we can continue delivering on that promise for public sector organisations. The addition of our Data and AI services to the framework will allow us to do what we have helped so many businesses do and unlock the full potential of their data, transforming the services that government organisations deliver for their teams, their customers, and the public.
“Entering our 10th year as an approved G-Cloud partner is testament to the quality of the services and support that our teams have delivered, and will continue to deliver, for our customers.”
About Crown Commercial Service
Crown Commercial Service supports the public sector to achieve maximum commercial value when procuring common goods and services. In 2022/23, CCS helped the public sector to achieve commercial benefits equal to £3.8 billion – supporting world-class public services that offer best value for taxpayers.
To find out more about how Cloud Direct has helped public sector organisations transform their ways of working, take a look at our Kent County Council case study.
In the blink of an eye, a few months passed and we were heading back to the Gherkin to hold our second breakfast briefing of the year. Hosting an exclusive group of security and technology leaders from the financial services sector, with the London skyline as a backdrop, we delved into critical discussions about managing operational resilience in today’s fast-evolving financial landscape.
To guide the conversation, we were joined by James Hardy, former Chief Resiliency Officer at State Street Corporation, and Microsoft’s Yasser Toson. They provided invaluable insights into the cutting-edge technologies Microsoft uses to ensure near-perfect resiliency SLA rates of 99.998%.
Key highlights
Henry Bird led the session, introducing the agenda and highlighting the strategic partnership between Cloud Direct and Microsoft. Over the past two decades, Cloud Direct has grown ever closer to Microsoft, and now rank in the top 0.5% globally. This status brings tangible benefits to our clients, including enhanced access to advanced Microsoft support, funding, and in-depth solution assessments – which Henry provided a whistle-stop tour of before the main event.
James Hardy, former Chief Resiliency Officer and State Street
Following Henry’s introduction, James Hardy highlighted the importance of understanding the interconnected risks within the financial markets – particularly in an increasingly complex, technology-driven world. He emphasised the need for organisations to not only implement technical solutions, but to align them with a resilient mindset and culture.
“It’s forcing organisations to better understand the environment which they operate in, particularly as the technology world we’re in is exponentially networked and complicated and so humans are truly not able to understand the inter connectivity,” he said. “No one understood the interconnectivity of the financial markets in 2007 to 2008, and we are treading back towards concentrated risks that aren’t known.”
This, ultimately, raised the question: How are technology providers like Microsoft ensuring the safety and resilience of their customers in this complex landscape?
A perfect segue…
Yasser Toson, Azure Core Specialist at Microsoft
Finally, Yasser Toson, Microsoft’s Azure Core Specialist, addressed the challenges mentioned by James by highlighting Azure’s robust infrastructure for fault tolerance and disaster recovery.
He introduced the Azure Business Continuity Centre, a new tool designed to streamline continuity operations and ensure the highest level of operational resilience, and Azure Chaos Studio, a platform enabling businesses to simulate real-world failures and stress-test their systems to prepare for the unexpected. With these innovations, Microsoft continues to lead the way in safeguarding the future of financial services, and Yasser’s comprehensive tour of the platforms was well received by those in attendance.
What we learned
We always come away feeling excited and inspired when we have the chance to sit down, face to face, with a group of prospects and customers and explore the challenges they’re facing. In just a couple of hours, both James and Yasser covered plenty of ground and gave us and attendees plenty to think about.
But, in summary, there were three key lessons…
Learning from the past
In James’ talk, he took us through a couple of examples of previous resiliency failures, how they were handled, and the consequences they had. In exploring how Maersk, the world’s biggest shipping company, dealt with the disruption of a major outage across almost its entire cloud environment, and how ION Group coped with a wide-ranging ransomware attack, James provided grounding and context to the rest of his talk by demonstrating the real-world impact of managing, or mismanaging, operational resilience.
Preparation is key
Each attack is different, every outage has its own unique cause… but that doesn’t mean preparation is impossible. As well as learning from the previous real-world examples, Yasser’s introduction of Azure Chaos Studio also showed attendees how they can run realistic tests within their own environments. By quite literally introducing chaos into your own test environment, your team will have the opportunity to assess its handling of a breach, from reactive policy enforcements to data recovery times, and learn from realistic but simulated scenario.
Constant evolution requires constant learning
Business continuity plans and disaster recovery objectives have been around for long time, but they can often be mistaken for tick-box exercises. As threats evolve, so too must the way our teams react to them – and that requires instilling a culture of constant and constant learning. It’s down to technology leaders to build that environment, and in doing so create a team that is knowledgeable, responsive, and innovative – and we’re here to help with that.
If you missed out, there’s no need to worry. We’re sorry that we can’t put breakfast on, but the event is available to watch on-demand on The Learning Hub.
Cloud Direct is proud to have been accredited as a Microsoft Azure Expert Managed Service Provider (MSP) for the seventh year in a row.
In 2018, the Azure Expert MSP programme was launched to recognise and identify the best that Microsoft’s 400,000-strong Partner Network has to offer. Cloud Direct was one of the first partners to be awarded the accreditation and has maintained its status ever since.
Fewer than 150 organisations across the globe are recognised as Azure Expert MSPs, 61 of which are UK-based. The audit process, which is carried out by external assessors, considers expertise from across the entire organisation to evaluate its ability to deliver Microsoft Azure managed services at scale.
After receiving confirmation of the renewal from Microsoft, Cloud Direct CEO Brett Raynes said: “To once again be recognised by Microsoft as one of its best and closest partners is a huge achievement for the whole business. It is confirmation that our service delivery remains among the best in the world, and that is what we strive for every single day.
“It also means we can retain full confidence in knowing that we are delivering the best possible service for our customers to enable their transformation and success. We were among the first partners in the UK to receive the Azure Expert MSP accreditation, and to know we have continually met the strict assessment criteria for seven consecutive years is a huge source of pride.”
Earning our status as an Azure Expert MSP is just one of many ways in which we ensure our close alignment to Microsoft. Our way of working reflects Microsoft’s structure, practices, and principles, to help our customers unlock the array of opportunities that the Microsoft ecosystem presents.
What it means for our customers
A seventh year as an Azure Expert MSP confirms that our customers continue to receive service of the highest level. Every day, we are transforming businesses in a way that is achievable, sustainable, and exciting for them.
As an Azure Expert MSP, we will continue providing…
Better service
Nobody does it better. The auditing process for the Azure Expert MSP programme is incredibly strict and rigorous. If you’re working with an accredited partner, you know you’re working with the best.
Broader offerings
We evolve with Microsoft. As they innovate, we innovate with them. This means we help you access the latest and greatest in transformative technologies as soon as they come to market, unlocking the power of your data and helping you tap into opportunities in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and analytics.
Closer partnerships
We’re best friends with Microsoft. Only Azure Expert MSPs can be certain of that. We extend the benefits of that friendships onto our customers, including exclusive funding opportunities, the expertise of true market leaders, and so much more.
Start your transformation journey with an Azure Expert MSP. It’s the only way to guarantee best-in-class service and delivery. Let’s talk.
For the past ten years, Vickii Cornborough has expertly maintained two full-time roles. When she hasn’t been packing down at the front of the England or Harlequins scrum, she has been in boardrooms and on calls helping ambitious organisations make strategic decisions about their technology.
In the same year as her senior England debut, Vickii joined Cloud Direct as a Business Development Manager, and in the decade since her role has grown with the business and she now works as a Senior Manager for our Strategic Accounts, guiding them through digital transformation programmes and demonstrating the opportunities that Microsoft technologies can unlock.
To many, it may seem as if Vickii has been living two parallel lives. Playing in a World Cup Final in front of 42,000 supporters at Eden Park, 11,000 miles away from home, seems a far cry from the leather seats and detailed discussions of the boardroom – but that isn’t necessarily the case, according to Vickii.
“If I map my professional development against my playing career, it aligns perfectly,” she explained. “The clients I work with now are a huge reflection of how Cloud Direct has grown and scaled over recent years, and at the same time with England I was moving into those senior leadership roles.
“I’ve found that I’m the same person whether I’m on the pitch or in the boardroom. It’s about leadership, decision making, and managing a team efficiently for optimal performance, and there are skills that I have picked up at Cloud Direct and taken into England or Harlequins training, and vice versa. My approach is the same whichever role I am in.
“Cloud Direct wants to work with ambitious businesses, and that means having ambitious employees. I’m a product of that environment because of the flexibility that Cloud Direct has given me to balance my role here with my England career.”
As Vickii’s career has developed, alongside and as part of our business, so too has the world of technology. The speed of innovation is now greater than ever before, and the past year alone as seen the launch of countless new technologies that transform the way we work and operate.
The world of data has exploded, making it more valuable than ever. Businesses are creating and collecting enormous amounts of data, and now have the tools and capabilities to tap into it and use it to empower more impactful, meaningful decision-making – which brings us to another confluence in Vickii’s roles.
“That synergy between business and sport is growing,” Vickii said. “Data has been crucial part of finding that competitive edge in sport for a while now – I’ve grown up wearing GPS and heart-rate monitors, there’s microchips in the ball and in our gumshields now. We have teams of analysists working to find us that extra 1-2% to aid improving performances and, consequently, deliver the results.
“Business is no different. If you know your data and manage it well, then it’s there to guide your decision-making in exactly the same way. I’ve seen data transform sport and provide that leading edge. It’s really exciting to see businesses being impacted in the same way, and it’s great to play a role in that.
Last year, less than nine months after starting at loosehead in the Rugby World Cup Final, a third full-time role was added into the mix when Vickii became a mother. The rugby ball was put to one side, the boots tucked away, and attention turned to caring for the twin children that she and rugby-playing partner Will had welcomed into the world.
It was this third role that ultimately lead Vickii to call time on her international rugby career, announcing her Red Roses retirement earlier this week. She completes her career with a tally of 75 caps, winning five Grand Slam titles and reaching two World Cup Finals, and as a Guinness World Record holder having played an integral role in the Red Roses 30 consecutive victories.
A hugely influential Red Rose, both on and off the pitch, 75-cap @V_Cornborough has decided to call time on her international rugby career.
Thank you for everything, Vickii 🌹
— Red Roses (@RedRosesRugby) April 2, 2024
So, what next for Vickii?
“I’m fortunate to have a role at Cloud Direct that has allowed me to be so flexible, and to come back and hit the ground running,” she said. “I’m in a role where I can continue to make a big difference. I spend every working hour helping businesses to transform themselves, and make the most of technology, and that’s something I’m really passionate about.
“There’s a real synergy between sport and technology, and my role at Cloud Direct is one that allows me to capitalise on those professional and leadership skills every day.
“And hanging up my boots doesn’t mean I’m finished in rugby,” Vickii added. “I’m passionate about sport and the transformative effects of technology, and I want to play my part in changing the game for the better. I can still have an impact off the pitch, and encourage the next generation of leaders, and that makes me look forward to what the future holds.”
Cloud Direct is delighted to have confirmed its status as a Microsoft Azure Expert Managed Service Provider (MSP) for the sixth consecutive year.
Microsoft set up the Azure Expert MSP programme five years ago to promote only the most capable and experienced of its more than 90,000 partners. Of those organisations, Cloud Direct is one of only 131 to be awarded Azure Expert MSP status, 58 of which are UK-based.
Following the successful completion of the audit process, Cloud Direct CEO Brett Raynes said: “Reconfirming our position as a Microsoft Azure Expert MSP is a great source of pride for the whole team. To have our level of service independently verified as being among the best in the world means we can continue working towards our goal of truly empowering businesses to achieve fearless growth.
“The Azure Expert MSP programme sets high standard for its partners, and we are incredibly proud to be part of it. As a result, our customers can continue having the utmost confidence and reassurance in our ability to deliver successful Azure projects.”
The process, which is conducted by an external auditor, saw the Cloud Direct team assessed on their ability to deliver Microsoft Azure managed service provisions at scale, including the skill to migrate and support infrastructure, data, and applications within Microsoft Azure at the highest level.
What does it mean for our customers?
Resecuring our Azure Expert MSP status confirms that we continue to serve our customers to the highest possible standard. We are empowering businesses to achieve fearless growth in ways that are safe, affordable, and achievable for them.
As an Azure Expert MSP, we will continue providing…
Better service
It’s simple, really: when you work with an expert, you get expert-level service. Microsoft has made it easier to verify the best partners by awarding this rigorous accreditation to a select few top performing partners. Every service that we offer, every customer interaction, is held to a higher standard. We love raising the bar because it makes us up our game and hop right over it.
Broader offerings
Whatever your business needs, we can deliver it. Keen on IaaS, PaaS, or SaaS? We can advise you. Ready to adopt mobile working or the Internet of Things? We know all about it. Need help with app migration, security, or compliance? We have experts in all areas.
Closer partnerships
Being one of the few Azure Expert MSPs in the UK brings us much closer to Microsoft. Our already close partnership is now much stronger, and all the benefits that come our way get passed directly on to you, our customers. Picture this: Microsoft’s capabilities and software paired with our expertise and skills, all working to better your business. The possibilities are endless.
If you want to find out how you can unlock fearless growth with Microsoft Cloud, get in touch with one of our Experts. We’ll show you what’s possible.
In October 2022, Microsoft announced the launch of its new Azure Savings Plan. It’s billed as the easiest and most flexible way to save costs on compute services. According to Microsoft, customers can save up to 65%* on pay-as-you-go prices for select services.
How does the Azure Savings Plan work?
In short, you set your fixed hourly consumption limit to lock in your discount. When usage exceeds the hourly commitment, you will be charged at the usual pay-as-you-go rates. Customers can choose to commit for one or three years, and whether to pay upfront or in part each month at no additional cost.
Image source: Microsoft
Customers that take advantage of the Azure Savings Plan have lower and more predictable spending, which frees them up to reinvest in innovative technology projects.
How is it different to Reserved Instances?
The Azure Savings Plan is not replacing Reserved Instances (RIs). RIs have been a popular cost-saving method for some customers where the discount is applied to a specific virtual machine (VM) in a specific Azure region.
The Azure Savings Plan delivers greater flexibility as it can apply to any compute resource in any global region. Savings are optimised automatically to help you get the best value for money.
Customers may, for a limited time, swap RIs for an Azure Savings Plan, or combine them together.
Now’s the time to review your compute workloads to see which pricing model best works for your business. Is it worth you swapping RIs for an Azure Saving Plan, or having both for different workloads? Our experts can help you identify the best way to leverage the new Azure Savings Plan to optimise costs.
Discover your savings potential
It’s important you plan for known usage, so you can start leveraging the cost savings available to your company. Microsoft’s example of the potential savings available is demonstrated below based on an illustrative spend of $1,000,000.
Image source: Microsoft
Customers can assess potential cost savings with Azure Advisor. This tool is a window into the health of your Azure environment and is founded on the five pillars of the Well-Architected Framework (WAF) for best practice management.
Cost optimisation is an integral pillar of the WAF and should be balanced against the performance of the other four pillars. An Azure expert will be able to assess your spending against your strategic plans and advise on the best way to stabilise your costs with Azure Savings Plan.
Start optimising your costs
If you’re looking to learn more about how you can adopt the Azure Savings Plan, or more broadly save on costs across your businesses then get in touch. We offer a wide range of cost optimisation solutions, from workshops to assessments that all align with the Well-Architected Framework – ensuring you’re following Microsoft’s best practices.
* According to Microsoft
For the ninth consecutive year, Cloud Direct has achieved G-Cloud status.
We’re excited to announce we’ve added 11 approved services to G-Cloud 13, the UK government’s Digital Marketplace. The Digital Marketplace is a government-regulated tool for public sector organisations and agencies to find specialist providers for technical digital projects.
With almost a decade of experience as one of the earliest adopters of G-Cloud, our transformational consultancy and support services have been designed to support organisations such as local government, health, education, emergency services, defence and not-for-profit organisations.
Here is the full list of cloud services available from Cloud Direct on G-Cloud 13, under our legal name On Direct Business Services Limited:
- Azure Assessment and Migration
- Azure Managed Service
- Application Modernisation
- DevOps
- Sentinel Managed Service and Security Operations Centre (SOC)
- Cloud Security
- Microsoft 365 Migration and Managed Service
- Teams Calling
- Backup and Disaster Recovery (DR)
- Citrix-on-Azure
- Managed IT
Brett Raynes, CEO of Cloud Direct, says:
“We work with several government organisations who enjoy the increased level of security and accreditation G-Cloud 13 awards us. Our business and the services we provide are all about enabling transformation and as we expect to grow, we plan to increase our customer base amongst public sector organisations. The stringent G-Cloud framework shows our continued commitment to providing first-class service and support to our clients.”
Tarryn Lupini works as a Service Delivery Manager in our Cape Town Office and has been with Cloud Direct for 6 months. We managed to ask Tarryn some questions about her time with Cloud Direct so far. Find out more about Tarryn’s journey with us below.
What’s your role in Cloud Direct?
I have been with Cloud Direct for 6 months now, I look after our Managed Service clients by ensuring that all their needs are met. I am their first point of escalation on anything that is urgent to the customer. Ensuring Cloud Direct is adding value to our client’s day-to-day is a massive driving factor for me in my role.
What brought you to Cloud Direct, and how did you get here?
During my first interview, I felt a sense of familiarity, future, and energy that I was looking for in a place of work. The energy and ethos of what Cloud Direct is doing and wants to achieve was extremely attractive to me.
What does your average day look like?
My typical day consists of making sure any critical issues for my clients are addressed timeously and they are kept in the loop with the steps being taken.
What do you enjoy the most about your job and working for Cloud Direct?
Working for Cloud Direct has been amazing. It’s been great to build some valuable relationships, with both clients and employees, and the way in which we speak to one another with maturity and mutual respect makes me feel appreciated. The support I get from my manager is second to none, which is a huge factor in why I feel incredibly happy to be working for Cloud Direct. It feels like my potential and abilities are seen, and I feel extremely valued.
What project have you worked on that you’re most proud of?
Currently, we are working on an account that needs some extra support and attention. We are working hand in hand with the customer to train and upskill Engineers. Watching the Engineers grasp and understand the knowledge passed down and the process to follow is extremely rewarding.
What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
I love to be the hardest training female in the gym! I also enjoy hosting dinners/lunches with family and friends – cooking up a storm and making sure everyone is having a good time makes me incredibly happy. Visiting wine farms and finding cool new spots to book for breaks with friends and family is how I typically spend my time off.
Enjoying LIFE and aspiring to inspire before I expire is a huge driving factor for me.
How has Cloud Direct supported your career?
Within the first 6 months of being at Cloud Direct, I was offered the chance to do my ITIL foundation certification, which is something that I have wanted to do for a couple of years. The opportunity for me to further my abilities is huge, and I am thrilled to have this under my belt and leveraging everything I’ll learn at Cloud Direct.
Want to join the team?
We are always looking for the brightest and most curious minds to join our ever-growing team. If you think you have something to offer, or would like to see what job openings we currently have, then visit our careers page.
Microsoft launched their Partner Solution Designations at the start of October, are you aware of what these are and how they impact the way you find the right Microsoft Partner? We’ve published a blog post to answer any questions you may have.
How are they different from the old Microsoft Competencies?
In early 2022, Microsoft announced their plans to change its Microsoft Partner Network, which was designed for the on-premises world, by bringing it up to date with the new Cloud computing age with the Microsoft Cloud Partner Programme. As part of this change, Microsoft decided to ditch the Silver and Gold Competencies, and replace them with Solution Partner Designations.
The new designations significantly raise the bar and encompass a greater breadth and depth of requirements and expertise that partners must meet. Making it easier for you to identify, and then work with their most capable partners.
What are the Solution Partner Designations?
There are six Solution Partner Designations, making it simple to identify Microsoft’s most capable partners and understand which partner has the technical capabilities and experience to support your ambitions. These six solution areas are:
- Infrastructure
- Modern Work
- Security
- Data & AI
- Digital & App Innovation
Attaining these designations is more stringent than ever before. Microsoft is measuring partners’ success by analysing their capabilities in performance, skilling, and customer success. Once a partner has secured a Solution Designation, you can have peace of mind that Microsoft trusts them to deliver your projects to the highest standard.
“The Solutions Partner designation demonstrates your organization’s technical capabilities, experience, and ability to deliver successful customer outcomes aligned to the Microsoft Cloud”
Nicole Dezen – Chief Partner Officer and Corporate Vice President, Global Partner Solutions at Microsoft
How will this impact you choosing a partner?
The recent launch of Solution Partner Designation will, hopefully, have a positive impact on the way you qualify and decide on Microsoft Partners to work with. They’re designed to provide you with an exclusive, consolidated list of partners to choose from. Helping you make your decision on who to partner with, simpler.
Has Cloud Direct secured any badges?
Microsoft has announced that we are not only one of their first partners to qualify for Partner Solution Designation, but they have accredited us with five Solution Partner designation badges; Infrastructure, Modern Work, Security, Data & AI and Digital & App Innovation. And not to mention that we secured 100% on the Infrastructure and Modern Work designations. This puts us among Microsoft’s most cable, and trusted, partners in the UK.
If you have any questions about the recent launch of Microsoft Solution Partner Designations or would like to find out how you can leverage our capabilities to accelerate your Microsoft project, then simply get in touch.