Rackspace used to try to compete with Amazon's cloud. Now it's going 'all in' on Amazon Web Services with the acquisition of a consulting company.
- On Monday, the cloud services company Rackspace announced it would acquire Onica, a consulting company for Amazon Web Services.
- Rackspace was an early competitor to AWS, but it changed its business to focus on supporting customers using it, instead.
- Amid the shift, Rackspace went from a publicly-traded company to a private one as it succumbed to Amazon's dominance of the market.
- Rackspace and Onica plan to become the biggest provider of professional services for AWS in the cloud industry.
- Still, Rackspace also has partnerships with Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud, and plans to continue supporting customers on all three platforms.
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Rackspace started as a traditional web hosting company, but soon grew into one of the first competitors against Amazon Web Services, the retailer's market-leading cloud platform.
That didn't last: In 2015, as Amazon's cloud only re-entrenched itself as the dominant player in the market, Rackspace announced that it would stop competing with AWS, and start providing services to help customers use it, instead. In 2016, amid that major shift to its business model, it was taken private in a $4.3 billion deal by Apollo, an equity firm.
"If you look at where Rackspace has been historically, you might think we're a competitor [to Amazon], but we're really not a competitor anymore," Rackspace CEO Kevin Jones told Business Insider. Notably, Rackspace also has partnerships with Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.
On Monday, Rackspace reinforced that notion with the acquisition of Onica, a consulting firm that provides services to help customers move to Amazon's cloud and get the most out of it. The terms of this deal were not disclosed, and this acquisition is planned to close towards the end of the fourth quarter.
Onica, which boasts that it has 1,000 customers, says that it has an extensive network of partners who can help enhance and extend the Amazon cloud. Jones says that having Onica and its roster of cloud experts onboard will make it twice as proficient at helping customers take advantage of AWS, and instantly increase the number of certifications it holds in the platform by 45%.
"We believe the combination of Rackspace and Onica creates the most complete set of professional services and managed services in the industry," Jones said.
For Rackspace, that's important because as time goes by and customers get more familiar with Amazon Web Services, they're also looking for new ways to do more with the cloud.
"Customers are continuing to adopt cloud solutions," Jones said. "Many of them are quickly maturing on AWS. We have to continue innovating in this space. There's a full spectrum of expertise in the cloud."
Onica is 'exclusively focused' on AWS
Rackspace already provides professional services for AWS products, but Jones says Onica specializes in more cutting-edge forms of cloud technology, such as serverless computing, connected devices, and software containers.
"It's truly a transformative combination that expands Rackspace's capabilities and competencies, and we're really really excited," Jones said.
Onica has worked solely on AWS services since 2014. While employees had debated on if it should expand into other platforms, ultimately the company decided to stay "exclusively focused" on AWS because it was constantly launching new products that required the team's full attention, says Stephen Garden, CEO and co-founder of Onica.
Garden also says customers appreciate that exclusive focus because it shows "true depth of expertise."
"We realized the Amazon platform was significantly more mature than other cloud platforms at the time," Garden told Business Insider. "We started honing our skills and experience there. We haven't slowed down since."
That focus on AWS will only continue as part of Rackspace, but Onica sees the potential to reach far more customers.
"We're excited about existing Rackspace customers today that are looking to adopt more AWS services, and also just the combined scale of our sales and marketing organizations," Garden said. "That global reach there will look to connect with a lot more customers, and we're really enjoying the work that comes with presenting these services to new markets."
Onica initially became interested in doing because it respected Rackspace's "sizeable presence" in the market, and appreciated its intention to expand its AWS business.
"Combined, we have the most complete skill set now in AWS globally," Garden said. "That positions us uniquely for what today is the leading cloud provider."
In addition, both Garden and Jones also say the companies have a strong cultural fit because of their mutual focus on customer experience. Rackspace first made its name in the industry with a focus on so-called "fanatical support," which has since changed to "fanatical experience."
"The technical DNA of the company is very strong and there's deep roots there, and also this fanatical passion for helping customers be successful," Garden said. "We really share that motivation. It's a very natural fit. There is a big similarity in the types of customers we're working with."
'We've gone all in on the managed public cloud market'
Rackspace offers its own private cloud services, and partners with cloud companies like AWS, Microsoft, and Google Cloud. A big part of its business, says Jones, is helping customers understand which of those clouds is right for the job they're trying to accomplish, and helping them make the switch.
In fact, Jones says, Rackspace has "gone all in" on those clouds. He says that he sees growth in customers using those three clouds "across the board."
"We've gone all in on the managed public cloud market," Jones said. "That's reflected in our growth."
Although Onica specializes in AWS services, Jones says Rackspace plans to increase its focus on its partnerships with other clouds as well.
"We see momentum in all of the environments," Jones said. "There's significant, significant growth. We just can't do everything at one time. We've got other things that we're looking at as well in the future, but what I will say is we're seeing significant growth with Microsoft Azure, significant growth in Google, and great, amazing partnerships with VMware."