The 3L rule, a general piece of advice
What I am going to describe will sound elementary to most of you, even trivial but I know that there is a difference between being aware of something and actually doing it. I have been working hard to spread the DevOps word these last few years and through experiences, project, conferences and articles I have […]
Steer SAFely – So how do you do it?
This is the third blog in the DevOps – Scaled Agile series. In the previous blogs, we discussed the characteristics of a successful enterprise agile transformation and provided specific guidance on applying lean and agile practices at an enterprise level. We covered the “why” and a bit of the “how” at a high level, making […]
Why I became DevOps Certified
I usually do not care too much about diplomas or certifications. To me, one’s value isn’t reflected by a piece of paper but rather by his or her actions, dedication, motivation and efficiency. And yet, I decided to become DevOps certified and furthermore, become a teacher for that very same certification. Have I gone insane […]
Defining On-Prem
Sometimes, the meaning of a word or a phrase changes so quickly that you don’t even notice that it’s changed; at some point, you just realize that you’ve been using it differently. Take “on-prem,” for example. Not too long ago, if you said that a component of your IT system was on-prem, you meant that […]
Code Review – Write your code right
Writing code is definitely subjected to individual thinking, logics and perspective. How one writes code is completely depend on their technical and logical skills. Two different people can write the same code in an entirely different tactic (May be both logics of the code are right in their own way). Even two persons can write […]
The Second “S” To A Successful App: Simplicity
When developing an app for the first time, there are important factors that need to be taken into consideration, such as scalability as previously discussed. Ensuring the app can scale with a growing user base is paramount to success, but how do we ensure the user base will steadily increase? While there are a plethora […]
DevOps Empathicus – Where is your organization on the evolutionary scale?
Ok, I admit it – I sometimes cry when watching sad movies or as real-life events play out in the news. I put myself in the position of other people, sharing their joy and pain. This got me thinking about change-based initiatives like DevOps and what benefits organizations can realize when IT staff have the […]
The Pros and Cons of Remote Work in Ops
Remote work in Ops is divisive. The perks of working from home, your local coffee shop or wherever can be quite obvious to engineers and contributors. But some team leaders and company execs aren’t buying into it. One faction sees it as a way to do better quality work. Another has watched deadlines and motivation […]
Steer SAFely – Driving collaboration across multi-disciplinary teams
This is the second blog in the DevOps – Scaled Agile series. In the first blog, Scaling Lean and Agile for the enterprise: All hands on keyboard!!!, we discussed the characteristics of a successful enterprise agile transformation and described why engagement and commitment across all disciplines in the organization is not just optional, but required, […]
Starting with DevOps from Day 1
The Not So Minimal MVP In the ever evolving startup space, developers often skip crucial steps in their haste to get to market. Even more so, in the dynamic app development market, the common notion of an MVP (minimally viable product) allows developers to iterate versions of their product based on issues and feedback. Seen in the […]
DevOpsDays MSP 2015: Minneapolis is a Tech Hub?
I stopped in the Minneapolis Airport to make a connection earlier this year. I never spent much time thinking about Minneapolis given its reputation for snow and ice. I hadn’t ever planned to go there nor had I explicitly made plans to avoid it. That was until the lineup for devopsdays MSP came out. I […]
Benefits for the Product Team in Working Support Cases
An increasingly popular practice that’s being adopted by DevOps groups are developers working regular shifts in front line support. The thinking behind this exercise is pretty sound. When exposed to the real world problems and frustrations customers face when using their software, a developer’s work becomes more about supporting that customer experience and increasing customer […]
Tailoring DevOps to your IT: A case study for SAP
I am frequently asked if DevOps principles can be applied to legacy environments such as SAP. They clearly can, with some tailoring. But you should be aware of certain constraints. An agile transformation from conventional IT (where the SAP software delivery process is split between business analysts, development, the QA department and IT operations) towards […]
Essential Ingredients for Continuous Deployment
To build the system to automate the build and deployment (continuous deployment) process there are few main areas which need to be covered. Following are our prerequisites. – Source code – Builds System – Deployments – QA Automation To describe above here are the main ingredients – Configuration Management – continuous integration/ Automated Build – […]
The Three “S’s” To A Successful App, Pt. 1
Developing your first app can be a daunting task. Many first-time developers may overlook, or over think, certain aspects of building their first app. Through scores of conversations and interactions with developers, I established common pain points and gathered advice that they themselves wish they had known before building their first app. With all of […]
#HugOps in Practice: Empathy Skills for DevOps
Get it together! Why is your service always down?!” We think we’re doing the whole DevOps thing right — new hires can deploy on day one, Travis CI is humming along, and we own the code we ship. But then something breaks, something doesn’t go according to plan, tempers flare up, and all that warm, […]
Five mistakes enterprises make while implementing automation
Automation, if done right, can add a ton of value to an IT organization. Benefits include speed, quality, and improved productivity. But only a few IT organizations have been able to truly reap the benefits of it. Why is that? What is it that these successful companies do differently while others continue to struggle? Here […]
The Cost to DevOps: 27 Mufflers
Imagine Imagine that you are designing the 2016 Range Rover line of sport utility vehicles. Like all gas powered vehicles, each one needs an exhaust muffler. Range Rover likely has narrowed in on a preferred provider of mufflers. But imagine what would happen if the designers and factory line workers could pick from any one […]
Lean for DevOps: Mapping the tributaries and deltas of demand
Here at IBM’s Lean practice we use a diagram called ‘Mississippi’ to analyze demand. It is not so-called because it originates in Mississippi – in fact I’ve been given to understand that this tool was developed, and named, in our UK practice*. Instead, it’s called the Mississippi because, like that great river, demand comes from […]
How Continuous Delivery is Changing Software Development
When you start to implement a new methodology, it’s very easy to get bogged down by the specifics and lose sight of the overall goal. With Continuous Delivery, we see endless debate about whether to use Puppet, Chef, or Salt for deployment, or discussion about how to build a CD pipeline with containers. These are […]
An Open Letter to DevOps “enthusiast”
Dear DevOps “enthusiast”, You are confused. But I am confused as well. For approximately two years now this DevOps thing has been both exciting and frustrating. And in ways that are totally different for each of us. At the intersection of all the disparate confusion is the “perfect storm”. What that means for now is […]
Appster Must Produce Mobile Apps Using Nimble DevOps Practices (It Has No Choice)!
In order to meet the many challenges of producing loads of different app/server projects large and small in extremely rapid succession, Appster collaborates on, automates, and dashboards everything it can. “Unlike traditional product companies (i.e. one product with lots of developers) or corporate IT shops (i.e. silos of products and services that rarely change), Appster […]
The Wonder Pill for Mobile Application Success
Dr. James Brown stunned the British Science Festival by announcing a wonder pill that could reduce your weight, lower the risk of high blood pressure, cancer, diabetes, depression, and anxiety. With everyone in attendance eagerly awaiting what it was, he plainly exclaimed that the “wonder pill” was daily exercise. The most effective solution was the […]