2025 Cloud Trends: How Technology Advisors Can Become CIOs’ Most Trusted Allies
By Koby Phillips, VP of Cloud Practice, Telarus
Let’s be real: Being an IT leader can be rough at times. Leaders today are dealing with a variety of cloud-related challenges, like AI consuming resources, rampant cyberthreats, and cloud bills that resemble the GDP of small nations. The list goes on.
The truth is, you’re not just selling cloud solutions anymore. Now more than ever, IT leaders are depending on technology advisors like you to make informed decisions and overcome complex operational challenges. As a partner selling cloud solutions, you also need to be a part-time therapist, fortune teller, and technical guru. This means you must be on top of your game, and up to date with the latest cloud trends.
With this in mind, here are some key insights and talk tracks, specifically tailored to help you become a critical resource for CIOs and IT leaders and grow your advisory practice.
☁️ Trend #1: AI and Cloud: Best Friends or Frenemies?
AI is becoming easier to access, with cloud service providers (CSPs) like AWS, Azure, and GCP now offering AI-as-a-Service (AIaaS). Almost every business today needs AI to streamline workflows and improve decision making. However, AI workloads have become cloud’s VIP passengers, demanding first-class seats and extra legroom—and IT leaders are struggling to accommodate them.
What CIOs are asking:
- “Why is our cloud bill reading like a ransom note after spinning up AI models?”
- “Which AI tools should we even invest in?”
- “Do I have the resources to pull this off?”
- “My data is not aligned! Where do we start?”
How you can help:
- Identify the key components, starting with data readiness.
- Simplify the decision process by connecting CIOs with resources that can support pre-trained AI models from your MSP suppliers.
- Share examples of AI success stories from businesses of similar size or industry.
Pro Tip: Make sure your clients have the right cloud resources in place before running AI use cases— meaning adequate CPU, GPU, and TPU and the flexibility to scale up or down as workloads change.
☁️ Trend #2: Hybrid Cloud Is Here to Stay
Demand for hybrid cloud is skyrocketing, with Allied Market Research predicting a 17.2% CAGR through 2032. CIOs today want the agility and control of private cloud, and the security of their own on-prem servers. Yet many are having a hard time deploying and managing hybrid clouds. As a technology advisor, you need to be ready to field questions about hybrid cloud and help customers optimize their environments.
What CIOs are asking:
- “Why does our cloud architecture feel like a complex love triangle, with conflicting dependencies?”
- “How do we ensure compliance across multiple environments without losing our minds?”
How you can help:
- Introduce resources that will act as the “cloud marriage counselor” and help bridge the communication gap between public and private environments.
- Bring real-life hybrid cloud architectures to the conversation (bonus points if you have supplier examples).
Pro Tip: Avoid telling customers to go all-in on one cloud. That ship has sailed. Customers can control costs and improve reliability by leveraging multiple providers.
☁️ Trend #3: Cloud FinOps is a Must—Because No One Likes Surprise Bills
Cloud costs aren’t just growing, they’re mutating due to overprovisioning, inefficient utilization, and unexpected demand spikes. Considering this, cloud financial management (FinOps) is more important than ever—and something all businesses should be leveraging in 2025.
What CIOs are asking:
- “Who approved this massive cloud bill? Oh wait, it was me…”
- “How do we optimize cloud spend without halting innovation?”
How you can help:
- Point out suppliers offering FinOps tools that can track real-time cloud spending.
- Offer resources that provide cloud cost audits as part of the advisory services.
- Provide insights that highlight multi-cloud cost optimization strategies that work.
Pro Tip: Telling a CIO they “just need to monitor usage more closely” is like telling someone to “just eat less” to lose weight. Offer solutions, not clichés.
☁️ Trend #4: Fortify the Cloud with Stronger Security Measures
Cloud security remains a top concern for both IT leaders and boards. Many companies today have insecure environments, with data scattered across on-prem servers, public clouds, and edge devices. At the same time, threat actors are increasingly targeting cloud platforms and looking for easy entry points. To secure their data and prevent costly attacks, companies must adopt Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) and cloud-native security tools that protect applications, data, and infrastructure.
What CIOs are asking:
- “Are we compliant?”
- “How do we secure data when it’s everywhere?”
How you can help:
- Help customers understand cloud-native security tools (e.g., Azure Defender, AWS GuardDuty).
- Offer cybersecurity assessments focused on cloud environments.
- Highlight how they can deploy disaster recovery and business continuity plans tailored for the cloud.
Pro Tip: It’s one thing to say, “security is everyone’s responsibility.” Putting it into practice is another story. Make sure IT leaders have updated security roadmaps that align with their specific needs and end-users —as well as comprehensive plans for executing them.
☁️ Trend #5: Vertical-Specific Clouds Are on the Rise
Most public cloud providers now offer vertical-specific solutions for industries like healthcare, finance, and retail. IT leaders need help understanding the evolving market, and how vertical-specific clouds can help them remain compliant and efficient.
What CIOs are asking:
- “Do we really need a special ‘healthcare cloud’ if our regular cloud seems fine?”
- “Are vertical-specific clouds worth the price tag?”
How you can help:
- Explain vertical cloud value props (compliance benefits, pre-built templates, and tailored AI models).
- Showcase studies from similar industries to highlight measurable outcomes.
- Bring in resources that help CIOs understand when a vertical cloud is essential versus optional.
Pro Tip: Vertical-specific clouds are often overhyped, and may lack real value. But some are also essential. Always be honest, and help IT leaders avoid unnecessary upgrades and purchases—even if it means passing up a quick sale. This is important for building solid, long-lasting relationships.
Your Role in 2025: Advisor, Ally, Trusted Guide
As a Telarus technology advisor, you’re not just another vendor—you’re the strategic ally every CIO needs to thrive in 2025. You’re also in high demand.
Just remember that being a technology advisor isn’t only about selling, but also helping IT leaders streamline their operations and add value to their organizations. Your job isn’t to promise the moon; it’s to guide IT through complex decisions and optimize costs, while helping them stay compliant (and sane).
So go out there, start impactful conversations, and don’t forget these tips:
- Always focus on outcomes, not just products.
- Listen first, pitch second.
- When in doubt, lean on the Telarus Cloud Practice Team—we’ve got your back.
With Telarus Cloud Solutions, you have full access to top cloud suppliers, technical experts who can support you on complex deals, and tools and resources to make cloud adoption smoother and smarter.
We are standing by to help! To start a conversation, send us a message.