Peter Brauer of T-Mobile on FinOps vs TBM: Governance, Shadow IT & Enterprise Cloud Costs

Is cloud always the right move? And what happens when governance is missing?

In this episode of FinOps in Action, I sat down with Peter Brauer, Senior Enterprise Architect at T-Mobile, who has led FinOps governance frameworks responsible for over $150M in savings.

Peter shares lessons from his transition from TBM (Technology Business Management) to FinOps, and why shadow IT has become one of the most overlooked yet critical costs in the cloud era. He explains why governance isn’t just rules but remediation and flexibility, and why not everything belongs in the cloud — despite the hype.

Here’s what we talked about:

• How TBM and FinOps overlap (and where they differ)

• Why shadow IT is exploding in the cloud era

• Governance frameworks that actually work in FinOps

• When moving to the cloud makes sense — and when it doesn’t

• The hidden costs of SaaS and licenses most companies miss

Quote of the Show:

• " Putting things in the cloud is inexpensive. Getting things out of the cloud, data, interacting with the things in the cloud, that's where your cost is." - Peter Brauer

Links:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterbrauer/

• Medium: https://medium.com/@p.b.brauer

• Website: https://www.t-mobile.com/

In this episode of FinOps in Action, Peter Brauer, Senior Enterprise Architect at T-Mobile, shares how effective governance frameworks have driven over $150M in savings. He discusses the shift from TBM to FinOps, the rising impact of shadow IT, and why governance must balance rules with flexibility. Peter also explains why not every workload belongs in the cloud and how organizations can avoid the hidden costs of SaaS and licensing.