BT has enlisted the support of Amazon Web Services (AWS) to overhaul its legacy infrastructure and internet applications and migrate to cloud-first architecture as it continues its wide-ranging modernisation programme.
The five-year deal will see AWS transform BT’s applications to be cloud-first, modular, and reusable across the business, providing its consumer, enterprise, global and Openreach divisions with the tools they need to be more productive and better serve customers.
The shift from legacy to cloud-based infrastructure will simplify BT’s environment and reduce maintenance costs while also providing the flexibility to react and even predict customer demands.
BT cloud transformation
“We have a big opportunity when it comes to modernising our infrastructure, and our collaboration with AWS is a key one for us as we deliver the transformation needed to accelerate BT,” said Thomas Dücke, Chief Operating Officer of BT Digital, a unit established by BT earlier this year to facilitate the transformation.
“BT’s move to cloud-first applications can help reduce IT maintenance costs, streamline operations and help it better adapt to evolving customer needs,” added Adolfo Hernandez, Vice President and General Manager, Telecom Global Industry Business Unit at AWS. “Plus, the AWS pay-as-you-go model offers flexibility so BT only pays for the IT needed.”
BT is currently investing heavily in full fibre and 5G networks, while its planned modernisation programme will see it vacate its London St Paul headquarters in favour of a new head office and base its operations at around 30 sites across the UK.
The programme will also involve the loss of 13,000 jobs, mainly in back office and middle management roles, with new positions created in engineering and customer service.
The company has made other moves to make its supply chain and procurement operations more efficient, selling its fleet management unit in 2019, outsourcing its supply chain to GXO Logistics, and establishing a standalone procurement company called BT Sourced.
BT says the efforts have delivered results ahead of schedule, achieving £1 billion worth of savings 18 months earlier than originally planned. Meanwhile it has brought forward its £2 billion target from 2025 to 2024.
