65% verified; 80–90% projected.
We set a 30% AWS cost-reduction target with HEC Media on a full platform decommission — and delivered a verified 65%, cutting spend from ~$3,570/mo to ~$1,250/mo (~$27,833/year saved), on time, with zero downtime. The remaining optimization roadmap is projected to bring the total reduction to 80–90%.
From a 30% target to 65% verified — and 80–90% projected.
Monthly AWS spend, Jan–Jun 2026: HEC Media’s bill fell from $3,569.68 to $1,250.28. Completing the remaining optimization roadmap is projected to reduce total spend by 80–90% from the January baseline.
The 65% result was verified via AWS Cost Explorer (read-only), 2026-06-30. The 80–90% range is projected, not yet realized.
Results at a glance
| KPI | Target | Actual (verified) | Projection |
|---|---|---|---|
| AWS cost reduction | 30% | 65% | 80–90% |
| Monthly $ saved | $500/mo | $2,319/mo | ~$2,856–$3,213/mo |
| Annual $ saved | — | ~$27,833/year | ~$34,269–$38,553/year |
| Zero-impact decommission | 0 incidents | 0 | — |
| Timeline | ≤28 days | 28 days | — |
| Data backup completeness | 100% | 100% | — |
| Client deliverables | 6 | 6 | — |
The problem
HEC Media needed three things at once: a clear picture of a complex AWS environment, a safe plan to decommission a legacy platform without breaking shared services, and a credible path to materially lowering the AWS run-rate.
The operational challenge was not just cost — it was dependency risk.
- Multiple subdomains pointed at shared infrastructure
- Some services were exclusive to the platform being decommissioned; others were shared assets that could not be touched
- Written, decision-ready deliverables were required before any change execution
The partnership model
This was a cloud engineering engagement, not an AI implementation. It shows how YT Advisors works alongside an existing team and inside a live production environment: understand the architecture, agree on the measurable objective, document dependencies and risk, gate consequential changes, and leave the client with clear ownership.
AI review decisions from the cloud engineering engagement.
These publication-safe views show an AI reviewer finding a production blocker, requiring a correction, and approving the corrected head. They demonstrate the reviewed engineering partnership, not an AI rollout.
Screenshots show public pull-request review metadata and technical findings; source code and credentials are excluded.
The approach
- Inventory — catalog every AWS service and map dependencies
- Separate — split exclusive resources from shared assets
- Document — write down decommission risk before recommending changes
- Quantify — translate findings into dollar-denominated savings
- Execute — cut over on a fixed date, with formal approval gating every change
What was delivered
6 client-facing deliverables across audit, dependency mapping, and the decommission roadmap — each reviewed and approved before execution. Zero production incidents on HEC Media’s operations during or after cutover, and 100% of data backed up and verified.
Conclusion
YT Advisors delivered a full AWS audit, dependency map, decommission playbook, and clean cutover for HEC Media — realizing a verified 65% AWS spend reduction against a 30% target, with 80–90% total reduction projected as the remaining optimization roadmap lands, zero production incidents, and 100% of data backed up and verified.
“YT Advisors set clear targets and delivered — they cut our AWS costs dramatically with zero disruption to our services, and reported on the actual outcomes, not just activity.”
— Jayne Ballew, Director of Programming, HEC Media
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