COBRA™ Assessment - CleanSlate Technology Group
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CleanSlate Optimization Benefits & Readiness Assessment

Know Where You Stand
Before You Commit.

COBRA™ looks at what you are running today and tells you what is worth doing about it, across cloud, data, AI and modernization. You get a business case with real numbers behind it and a roadmap in priority order. The roadmap is yours, whatever you decide to do next.

Schedule a 30-Minute Conversation See Exactly What It Involves
Assessment at a Glance
~2 Weeks
Full assessment delivery
~4 Hours
Client time commitment
3
Assessment tracks to choose from
Zero
Obligation to proceed
Three Focused Assessments

What COBRA™ Actually Stands For

COBRA™ is the CleanSlate Optimization Benefits & Readiness Assessment. Every COBRA™ follows the same proven method. Which one you run depends on the decision in front of you.

COBRA DATA & AI

Works out which AI and data projects are worth doing, and whether you are ready to do them.

Key Deliverables
  • AI Opportunity Roadmap
  • Prioritized Use Cases
  • Business Case & Impact
Request COBRA DATA & AI
COBRA MIGRATE

Looks at what you run on-premises or in another cloud, and what moving it actually takes.

Key Deliverables
  • Migration Roadmap
  • TCO Analysis
  • Risk & Readiness Report
Request COBRA MIGRATE
COBRA MODERNIZE

Finds what is worth modernizing first, and what it costs to leave the rest alone.

Key Deliverables
  • Modernization Roadmap
  • Target Architecture
  • Prioritized Initiatives
Request COBRA MODERNIZE

Breadth and depth across the ecosystem. Our expertise across cloud platforms, databases, storage, VMware, and AI lets us deliver comprehensive assessments that translate technical findings into business value.

The Two Halves of a COBRA™

Benefits and Readiness

Every assessment answers two questions. What value can we unlock, and are we ready to move? You keep everything it produces, whether or not you ever work with us.

Benefits
What value can we unlock?

We find where the money is across your cloud, data, AI and applications, and put numbers to it.

Key Deliverables
Quantified business value and TCO savings
Revenue growth and efficiency opportunities
Prioritized use cases and investment roadmap
Executive-ready business case with ROI analysis
Readiness
Are we ready to move?

We assess your organization's readiness across people, process, technology, and governance.

Key Deliverables
Holistic readiness assessment
Architecture, security, and operating model review
Risk, constraints, and dependencies identified
Prioritized recommendations to accelerate value
This document is yours.
Take it to another vendor. Act on it internally. Use it to build the budget case. No obligation, contractual or otherwise.
Schedule a 30-Minute Conversation

COBRA™ is not for everyone. If you already have a clear technology roadmap built on actual discovery data, a funded initiative already in motion, and an internal team executing against it, you may not need this. If any of those three things are missing, you do. The first conversation will tell you which situation you're in.

Like a doctor who runs tests before prescribing treatment, we assess before we recommend. COBRA™ is the test. The roadmap is the prescription.
The Process

The COBRA™ Process

Roughly four hours of your team's time. Around two weeks start to finish. No surprises.

1
2–3 Business Days
Discovery

Understand your business goals, environment, and key data points.

2
3–5 Business Days
Benefits Analysis

Put numbers to the opportunities, the savings, and what it is worth to the business.

3
3–5 Business Days
Readiness Assessment

Evaluate technical, operational, and organizational readiness to move forward.

4
2–3 Business Days
Readout & Plan

Executive readout with a prioritized roadmap and next steps. Yours to keep. No obligation to continue.

What Happens Next

COBRA™ Opens the Door to Funded Programs

If you choose to move forward, AWS partner programs can fund the next phase. You don't have to commit to any of that today.

1
COBRA™ Assessment
Diagnostic. No cost to you. The roadmap is yours to keep.
→
2
RAMP Assess
Funded up to $75K through AWS programs. Deeper roadmap and execution planning.

Programs we draw on: OLA, AI Assessment, POC, and MAP Assess. CleanSlate is certified to deliver all of them, which is why the assessment is fully funded in most cases.

Your COBRA™ roadmap lays out the full path, including what each later phase involves and what it costs. Nothing beyond Step 1 is decided until you decide it.

See the Whole Path Before You Take the First Step

The RAMP Journey Map lays out all four phases, COBRA™ through Migrate and Modernize, with what each one produces and exactly how AWS funds it. RAMP Assess alone is funded up to $75K.

View the Journey Map
Why AWS Funds This Work

Certified Across the Programs That Pay for It

Funding is not a favor. It is available because CleanSlate is certified to deliver these programs and has done so repeatedly.

Program Expertise

  • Migration Acceleration Program: Assess, Mobilize and Migrate, including credits and incentive expertise across VMware, database, AI and modernization
  • OLA and MODA: certified and delivered in every OLA type: Windows, SQL, Oracle, Db2, storage, VMware, and cloud to cloud from Azure and GCP
  • Proof of Concept: POC credits, POC partner cash, and AI POC
  • AI Funding: AI Assessment, AI Production Ready, and Amazon Quick programs
  • Modernization: MODA and the MMP Windows Modernization Program

Technology Depth

  • AI and agentic AI: Amazon Bedrock, Bedrock AgentCore, Strands Agents, Kiro, Amazon Quick, Amazon SageMaker AI, Amazon OpenSearch
  • Data and analytics: Amazon QuickSight, AWS Glue, Amazon Redshift, Amazon S3, AWS Lake Formation
  • Migration and modernization: AWS Transform, Application Migration Service, Database Migration Service, Mainframe Modernization, Migration Hub
  • Platform and runtime: EKS, Amazon ECS, App Runner, AWS Lambda, Step Functions, EventBridge, API Gateway
  • Governance and operations: Control Tower, Landing Zone Accelerator, CloudFormation, Systems Manager, CDK, HashiCorp, FinOps
AI CompetencyAWS validated
Migration and ModernizationAWS validated
DevOpsAWS validated
SaaSAWS validated
Before You Schedule

Here's Exactly What That 30-Minute Call Looks Like

1

You describe your environment

Plain terms. A 10-minute overview of where you are today is all we need. We ask the right questions. Nothing needs to be prepared in advance.

2

We confirm whether COBRA™ applies

We tell you whether your situation is a fit and walk you through your funding options. Most organizations qualify for full funding. If yours does not, we explain why.

3

You leave the call with a clear picture

What the assessment involves, what it takes from your team, what you'll have when it's done. No pitch. No pressure. No follow-up if you're not ready.

Want to see beyond the first call? Here's what it's like to work with CleanSlate, week by week.

Working with CleanSlate has been one of my best experiences while sponsoring a third-party partner engagement. CleanSlate very efficiently helped us secure funding, put together a project roadmap, proposed a sound architecture, and started executing right away with minimal hand-holding.
VP of Engineering
Digital Native SaaS Company
Common Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Are we obligated to work with CleanSlate after the assessment?
No. COBRA™ produces a roadmap that is yours to keep and act on however you choose. Many organizations do choose to continue with CleanSlate for implementation, because the assessment itself demonstrates how we work. But there is no obligation, contractual or otherwise. We believe the quality of what we deliver earns the next engagement. That's the only mechanism we use.
Is COBRA™ really free?
In most cases, yes. COBRA™ is funded through AWS partner programs that CleanSlate participates in as a Premier Tier Partner. These programs exist to help organizations evaluate their cloud strategy. AWS funds them because a well-executed migration or modernization creates value for everyone. We'll confirm your funding eligibility in the first conversation.
How much of our team's time does this take?
Typically about four hours total across roughly two weeks. This includes a kickoff session, a findings review, and a final roadmap presentation. The bulk of the work happens on our side. We don't burden your team with lengthy questionnaires or ongoing availability requirements.
We already have a technology roadmap. Do we still need COBRA™?
It depends on how that roadmap was built. If it was built on actual discovery data (real workload analysis, real licensing inventory, real cost modeling) then probably not. If it was built on assumptions, vendor proposals, or internal estimates, COBRA™ will likely change it in meaningful ways. The conversation to have is: how confident are you in your current numbers?
What if we're not on AWS?
COBRA™ is built on AWS's assessment methodology but extended to cover your full environment, including on-premises, Azure, Google Cloud, and IBM infrastructure. We also maintain deep IBM partnerships. The output will give you an honest picture of where AWS fits, where it doesn't, and what the alternatives look like.
How is CleanSlate different from other AWS partners offering assessments?
Fewer than 1% of AWS partners achieve Premier Tier status. That distinction reflects depth: 25 years of expertise, 85+ AWS certifications, and a track record across complex environments. More practically: some partners run assessments as a sales mechanism to justify a solution they've already decided to propose. COBRA™ is a diagnostic. The quality of the roadmap we produce is what earns the next engagement. Not a lock-in.
What if we're not sure we're ready for an assessment yet?
That's exactly what the first conversation is for. We tell you whether now is the right time. If it is not, we tell you what needs to be in place first. Some organizations need to resolve an internal alignment question first. Some need budget approval. We'd rather tell you that than start an assessment that isn't positioned to deliver value. The conversation has no commitment attached to it.
Where COBRA™ Fits

Assess Is the First Phase of SCALE

The SCALE model is how CleanSlate operates. You Assess to know where to start. You ACTIVATE to build and deliver. You EVOLVE to sustain and grow. COBRA™ is the Assess phase, and it's where every CleanSlate engagement begins, regardless of what you ultimately decide to build.

The roadmap COBRA™ produces belongs to you. There's no obligation to continue with CleanSlate. But if you do, you're not starting over. You're moving directly from a clear picture of where you are to the team that can help you get where you're going.

How the SCALE Model Works →
ASSESS ← You Are Here

COBRA™ maps your environment, scores your AI readiness, and produces a sequenced roadmap. That roadmap becomes the input to everything that follows.

ACTIVATE

We deploy production-grade AI using our accelerators and IP. Roadmap to working systems, value measured in weeks.

EVOLVE

Once you're running, we help you govern, optimize, and sustain what you've built, so it compounds rather than decays.

No Cost · No Obligation

Ready to Replace Assumptions With Actual Numbers?

Fill out the short form and we'll be in touch within one business day to schedule your 30-minute conversation. We confirm whether COBRA™ is the right fit, walk you through funding options, and tell you exactly what to expect.

Fully funded through AWS partner programs in most cases
About 4 hours of your team's time total
No obligation to proceed after the assessment
The roadmap you receive belongs to you, regardless of what you decide