Client Background

• Industry: Tertiary Education Institution

• Overview: A leading tertiary institution in New Zealand launched a significant digital transformation initiative in 2021 aimed at modernising technology across faculties and departments.

  As part of this strategy, a cloud-first approach was adopted, selecting Microsoft Azure as the preferred platform for business and corporate solutions.

The Challenge

A proof-of-concept Azure environment was initiated to support internal skill-building and early project development. However, the environment lacked:

• Structured governance

• Security controls

• Connectivity standards

• Subscription management and cost visibility

Meanwhile, project teams were under pressure to move into production, even though the foundational cloud platform wasn’t yet ready. There was an urgent need to deploy a well-architected, compliant, and scalable Azure environment to support both ongoing initiatives and future cloud migration from on-premises infrastructure.

The Solution

Cyma was brought in to design and implement an Azure Landing Zone from the ground up. Key elements of the solution included:

Cloud Architecture & Design:

• Developed a platform aligned with the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework and Well-Architected Framework

• Designed an application landing zone architecture to enable scalable, secure deployments

Networking & Connectivity:

• Established private and public connectivity standards

• Integrated secure network connections to on-premises infrastructure

Subscription & Cost Management:

• Standardised the subscription model to ensure visibility, accountability, and cost forecasting

• Enabled early detection of unexpected cost overruns

Governance & Compliance:

• Created a governance model using Azure Policies and RBAC

• Embedded cybersecurity controls and data protection policies

Operational Enablement:

• Implemented centralised logging, monitoring, and backup standards

• Defined day-to-day platform operations and support protocols

DevOps & Automation:

• Introduced Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and deployment pipelines

• Enabled teams to deploy consistently and rapidly via an automation-first approach

Measurable Results

Quantitative Results:

• Accelerated project deployment timelines by removing infrastructure delays

• Standardised cloud operations for multiple internal teams

• Increased cost visibility and predictability through structured subscriptions

Qualitative Results:

• Shifted focus from infrastructure challenges to value delivery

• Empowered project teams to build and scale with confidence in a secure, governed environment

• Enabled the cloud delivery team to focus on platform innovation and scaling, rather than manual support

Cyma’s Value Proposition 

Cyma delivered more than just cloud infrastructure, they delivered strategic enablement. By building a secure, scalable, and automated Azure platform, Cyma empowered the organisation to focus on innovation and outcomes, not infrastructure management. This engagement highlights Cyma’s ability to simplify complexity, align technology with strategy, and accelerate digital transformation in enterprise environments.