What to modernize first, and why that order
Assessments, reference architectures and enablement for teams moving to AWS or cleaning up what they already run there. Empowerment over outsourcing: your team makes the decisions and can explain them afterwards.
- €2,000 per workshop
- €1,000 per written result
- AWS, hybrid and on-premises
- Vienna or remote
The question is rarely whether to modernize
It is which of the forty systems earns it first, and what happens to the rest. Teams that skip that question end up with a lift-and-shift bill and the same operational problems, now hourly billed.
I work through it with your team: what runs today, what it costs, which constraints are real (data residency, licences, compliance, skills), and which workloads change the numbers when they move. The output is an order, not a wish list[1].
Where AI is part of the plan, the same layer logic applies as in my lecture: how much of the stack you operate yourself is a constraint decision, not a taste decision[3].
Written results you can act on
The workshop is €2,000, each written result €1,000. Most teams take two.
Modernization assessmentIncluded
Every candidate workload with its current cost, its constraints and the effort to move or rebuild, in one comparable table.
Reference architectureIncluded
The target picture for the first wave: accounts, network, identity, data and operations, drawn so both sides can read it[1].
Cost modelOptional
What the target costs per month at your volume, with the assumptions written next to the number[4].
Funding caseOptional
Whether AWS migration or modernization funding applies, and what an application needs[2].
Not everything has to move
Sometimes the data cannot leave the building, sometimes the licence makes the move pointless. Then the question becomes where the boundary runs and what crosses it.
Modernization is a responsibility decision
Before any service name comes the question of how much of the stack you want to run, and what the provider owes you once you stop.
Start with one review
The same rule as every workshop: €2,000 per workshop, €1,000 per written result. Net, plus VAT. Larger migration programmes are scoped after the review.
Cloud architecture review
Intake, one workshop with your platform and application people, written results within 5 business days.
€2,000 each, 3 to 4 hours, remote or on-site
Delivered within 5 business days after the last session.
Architecture review
The AWS services behind this work.
The building blocks that show up in most modernization plans, with a plain note on what each does and a link to the AWS documentation.
AWS Organizations
Groups AWS accounts, applies guardrail policies and consolidates billing.
AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM)
Who and what may call which service. For agents: one narrow role per agent.
AWS Well-Architected Framework
AWS guidance for reviewing workloads on security, reliability, cost, performance, operations and sustainability.
Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA)
Managed OpenShift clusters in your AWS account. The base for running OpenShift AI next to other AWS services.
Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP
Managed NetApp file storage on AWS. With S3 access points it bridges on-premises file shares and cloud AI services.
AWS Outposts
AWS-managed racks in your own data centre for workloads that must stay on site.
Amazon CloudWatch
Logs, metrics and alarms. For AI systems: latency, errors and cost per call.
AWS Pricing Calculator
Builds a cost estimate per service before anything is deployed.
Check AWS funding before you pay.
Many AI proofs of concept and cloud migrations qualify for AWS funding: credits for the AWS usage and, in some partner programmes, funds for the delivery work. What applies depends on the project, the programme and the AWS account team. I check it in the Idea Call, and the workshop results are written so they can go straight into an application.
Proof of concept
For a prototype on AWS with a clear path to production.
Migration
For larger cloud moves, planned in phases.
What people ask before booking.
Do you do the migration yourselves?
I do the architecture, the assessment and the enablement, and I work with your team or your partner for the execution. If you need a delivery partner, I say so early.
What does the review cost?
€2,000 for the workshop plus €1,000 per written result. The standard package with assessment and reference architecture is €4,000 net.
We already run on AWS but it is a mess. Does this fit?
Yes. Then the assessment looks at accounts, identity, cost and operations rather than at moving anything.
Can AWS pay for part of it?
Migration and modernization programmes have funding attached in some cases. What applies depends on the project and the AWS account team; I check it before you commit.
Do you cover hybrid and on-premises?
Yes. Red Hat OpenShift on AWS, FSx for NetApp ONTAP and Outposts are part of the toolkit when the data cannot move.
Linda Mohamed
I design and build AI and cloud systems on AWS and hybrid platforms, and I teach how they work. I have organised the AWS User Group Vienna for more than seven years, co-organise AWS Community Day DACH, teach AI architectures at Hochschule Burgenland, speak at conferences in Europe and the US, and maintain ai-solutions.wiki. Based in Vienna. Remote or on-site, in English or German.
Where the facts come from.
Prices, service names and limits change. The linked official pages are the reference; figures on this page were checked in September 2026.
Book it right here.
All prices are net. Companies outside Austria pay no VAT and can book directly by card. Companies in Austria, please choose “Pay by invoice”: 20% VAT is added there.
Legacy System Review
One workshop plus two written results: the assessment and the move recommendation.
Buy now →Pay by invoiceAI Discovery Workshop
One session and two written results, starting with the scored use-case shortlist.
Buy now →Pay by invoiceAI Single Session
Focused help on one roadblock: an architecture audit, a vendor evaluation or a technical deadlock.
Buy now →Pay by invoiceStart with one conversation.
30 minutes to look at your idea, your data and the right starting point. Or book 15 minutes if you only have a question.
- What you run today
- Which constraints are real
- Which workload moves first
- Whether funding could apply
Vienna, Austria · remote across Europe · [email protected]
