LAS VEGAS — The growth of Amazon Web Services (AWS) in the Philippines is driven by its industry-focused approach, which centers on telecommunications, financial services, retail, government, and education. These sectors are showing steady demand, and AWS believes that concentrating on them will help organizations use cloud technology in a more practical and effective way.
This shift shows how cloud use in the country is changing. Telcos want better systems to handle more data and digital services. Banks and fintech firms are improving security and online payments. Retailers want smoother operations as more customers shop online. AWS said organizing its teams around these industries will help companies get clearer support tailored to their needs.
Even with growing interest, many companies still find cloud adoption challenging. A lot of businesses use outdated systems, and many teams are not yet trained to manage cloud tools. These gaps slow down projects and make cloud adoption harder.
“Readiness and available skills in a customer’s ecosystem remain a major hurdle,” Precious Lim, country manager of AWS in the Philippines, said in an interview with Back End News at AWS re:Invent 2025. “This includes whether they have trained employees, capable partners, and support from principals like AWS to help them move forward.”
Because of this, AWS is investing heavily in training and upskilling. Lim said the company makes sure partners and customers get regular training and certifications so they can properly support cloud projects.
“We make sure our partners stay updated on skills and certifications, because that is one of the best ways we can scale, reach more customers, and help them move faster in their experiments and innovation projects,” she said.
Industry watchers say this focus on training is strategic. Cloud adoption in the Philippines cannot move forward if the workforce is not ready. By training partners, students, and customers, AWS is preparing the ecosystem for long-term growth.
AWS is working with companies such as Security Bank, GCash, and Maya, which rely on AWS solutions for services and operations. These firms are considered early movers in cloud adoption, and AWS expects more companies from telco, retail, government, and education to follow.
Under this approach, AWS teams assigned to each industry will work more directly with business leaders. Instead of only talking about technology, AWS said discussions now include business goals, such as lowering costs, improving customer experience, or modernizing internal systems.
Modernization continues to be a major need. Many companies still run old systems, including VMware setups, mainframes, and monolithic applications that are hard to update. AWS helps companies check which systems to move first and what method to use for migration. Some companies rehost old systems, while others rebuild applications to make them faster and easier to manage.
AWS also sees companies starting with basic cloud services such as compute, containers, storage, and databases before trying out more advanced tools. Interest in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning is also growing, especially for analytics and automation.
Still, the biggest issue is the lack of cloud-ready workers. To help fix this, AWS runs several talent development programs. One example is Cloud Club, a student community that gives young people access to training, peer learning, and certification support. The group already has more than 30,000 members across the country.
AWS also works with different schools to build innovation labs where students and teachers can try cloud and AI tools. These programs aim to prepare more young people for cloud careers even before they graduate.
AWS recently reached more than 100,000 certifications in the Philippines and plans to increase that number as cloud use grows. Lim said companies that want to modernize should work with providers that understand legacy systems and can guide the entire process, from planning to migration.
By focusing on these sectors and investing in local skills, the cloud company hopes to help more Philippine companies adopt cloud technology with fewer delays. The company said the goal is to support businesses as they move away from old systems and build digital services that are easier to scale and manage.