Should Mirantis prioritize expanding multi-cloud support in Mirantis Container Cloud or focus on deepening integration with existing supported platforms?

Introduction

The trade-off we're examining today is whether Mirantis should prioritize expanding multi-cloud support in Mirantis Container Cloud or focus on deepening integration with existing supported platforms. This decision is crucial for Mirantis' product strategy and market positioning in the competitive cloud infrastructure space.

I'll approach this analysis by first asking clarifying questions, then identifying the trade-off type, understanding the product, formulating a hypothesis, defining key metrics, designing an experiment, planning data analysis, creating a decision framework, and finally providing a recommendation with next steps.

Step 1

Clarifying Questions (3 minutes)

• Based on market trends, I'm thinking multi-cloud is becoming increasingly important for enterprises. Could you share how our current customer base is distributed across different cloud platforms?

Why it matters: Helps understand the immediate demand for multi-cloud support Expected answer: Majority on one or two platforms, growing interest in others Impact on approach: Would influence prioritization of specific cloud integrations

• Considering our revenue model, I assume we charge based on the number of nodes or clusters managed. Is this correct, and does pricing vary for different cloud platforms?

Why it matters: Affects the financial impact of expanding vs. deepening integrations Expected answer: Tiered pricing based on scale, slight variations per platform Impact on approach: Would inform ROI calculations for different strategies

• Regarding user impact, are we seeing any patterns in feature requests or support tickets related to multi-cloud capabilities versus deeper platform-specific integrations?

Why it matters: Indicates actual user needs and pain points Expected answer: Mix of both, with some emphasis on one area Impact on approach: Would help prioritize features based on user demand

• From a technical perspective, how modular is our current architecture? How easily can we add support for new cloud platforms versus enhancing existing integrations?

Why it matters: Influences the feasibility and resource requirements for each option Expected answer: Moderately modular, but with some platform-specific components Impact on approach: Would affect timeline and resource allocation for each option

• Considering our current team structure and expertise, do we have more resources aligned with multi-cloud expansion or platform-specific integrations?

Why it matters: Affects our ability to execute on either option effectively Expected answer: Balanced team, with some specialization in current platforms Impact on approach: Might require team restructuring or hiring for chosen strategy