The
first major issue we encounter when we start implementing DevOps is the need to
gain a basic understanding of what DevOps is and what it brings.
I’ve been asked many times: Is it something that will disappear after a while?
Why is it so important and why is it different?
He then quotes David Herron, who provided a simple
definition: “(DevOps is)…an integrated approach to software delivery that
include process, tools, technology, resources.”"
For
a long time it was a world of size, and big organizations had a clear advantage
over small ones, sometimes even a monopoly.
Now with the fast pace of changes in the market, the game
has changed. The organizations that are fast enough to react to changes and stay
relevant have the advantage.
In a fast moving environment, where speed is a necessity
and quality is not negotiable, organizations need to find a way to move
from ideation to delivery as fast as they can, with the highest quality.
Which actions should be taken to move towards adopting DevOps?
First we need to remove some barriers. There
are barriers between Dev (that wants to change the code, and add to it) and Ops
(that wants to keep everything stable). We need to break down and adjust the
boundaries between the developers and the operations people, so
that they work together. We want to deliver products with good quality and fast
time to production, and at the same time create trust between these groups.
We then need to remove some more barriers.
The whole ecosystem should speak the same language and move the organization
towards the same goal.
Marketing,
finance, HR, learning services, procurement, and legal should all change in
order to support rapid delivery and the DevOps changes.
For example, we see situations where the finance budget plan is approved once a
year, and cannot be aligned with the rapid changes the DevOps chain requires.
So we can add tools. We can add them
everywhere, making sure that there is no break down on the way to production.
Tools play an important role in building awareness of quality. We can create
continuous integration for every line of code, continuous delivery for any
functionality added and tested, health monitoring, better logs and more.
But I’m afraid that tools are not enough. Why?
Because
we need to know where to employ these tools. What is a valuable application of
these tools? How do we determine this? We need to know our production
line. We need to identify production line bottlenecks, understand and set up the
right process. Imagine we are a chocolate factory - we can add cocoa but still
not deliver chocolate if the mixer isn’t working properly.
Tools, processes and barriers are only a
small part of it. Why? Because we need people to be part of DevOps adoption.
And they need to have the right mindset to be able to deliver the right
feedback.
Why? Because in a rapidly changing
environment, we need people to give us feedback from every part of the
production line, whenever needed. In this complex environment, issues
arise, change and being develop differently throughout the production line.
Therefore we need people to understand the DevOps mindset and raise flags, when
necessary. We need to quickly identify problems and solutions. We can only do this
when we have the right mindset, and when everyone is on board and knows
what they need to do and why. In this complex environment we need all the
different professional perspectives to be available to us for fast decision
making. We need to know where to use our tools according to accurate feedback
and recognized bottlenecks, what to change and why. Without the right people
and mindset, we are limited in our ability to do so. To reach this state, everyone
needs to work together to create a culture of collaboration, to deliver value
fast. Without the right mindset, we may still succeed, but will still generate
a great deal of waste in the process, and reach our goals more slowly.
In extreme cases (and I have seen such cases), the entire
organization gets stuck due to a lack of collaboration, to the point where they
are not able to deliver.
So what is DevOps?
"DevOps means that there are no walls,
no gates, no transitions, and no ceremony between Development and Operations.
They are seamlessly integrated (when viewed from ’above‘) into a single, value
delivering, IT entity."
“(DevOps is)…an integrated approach to
software delivery that include process, tools, technology, resources.”
DevOps includes rapid collaborative
development without hassles, continuous testing, continuous deployment and
continuous monitoring, and it can't work without a proper mindset in place, one
that aims to allow everyone to collaborate to deliver value faster.
It cannot work without E2E organizational
support to make it happen. This means that DevOps is not only about Dev to Ops;
it involves the entire organization’s culture and functions: HR, Sales, Marketing
and more.
This is a huge challenge, but it is doable.
