DevOps Team Organization

Google SREs test the limits of infrastructure automation

Google SRE veterans spoke publicly about infrastructure automation work, its future and its limitations. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Site reliability engineer shift creates IT ops dilemma

Aspiring SREs find it hard to move away from tactical tasks to focus on strategic projects. Veteran SREs say the path to less toil begins with prioritization and automation. Continue Reading

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• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

SRE software refines DevOps incident response for enterprise

SRE workflows often emerge organically within enterprise IT teams, but software tools add measurability and automation for incident response and review in one DevOps shop. Continue Reading

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• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Can you accurately measure SLA expectations and results?

Realistic SLA expectations rely on accurately defined criteria, properly set. Test your knowledge of SLA measurements and learn to tailor contracts that avoid costly consequences with this quiz. Continue Reading

By

• Meredith Courtemanche, Director of Editorial Training

Adjust IT team dynamics for a cloud-native approach

As enterprises set their cloud-native strategy, they'll need to navigate major changes -- both from a technical standpoint and in terms of IT team structure and management style. Continue Reading

By

• Aymen El Amri

How ops teams stay relevant during a shift left in DevOps

IT operations administrators should not perceive the shift left in DevOps as a threat to their relevance, but rather as a catalyst for a change in their priorities. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

AppDynamics AIOps injection sets the stage for IT automation

AIOps IP from Perspica broadens AppDynamics' automated root cause analysis features, but enterprises must evaluate IT and business analytics options carefully before they commit. Continue Reading

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• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Pop quiz: Can you identify these top IT trends of 2019?

From serverless and AIOps to a widening tech skills gap, numerous IT trends bring momentum into 2019. See how ready you are for new opportunities and hurdles in IT with this quiz. Continue Reading

By

• Emily Mell, Former Site Editor

4 development tools that bridge the architect-developer gap

There can be a frustrating divide between the role of software developer and architect in any organization. There are ways to bridge that chasm, and one of these four tools just might help. Continue Reading

By

• Tom Nolle, Andover Intel

Explore the new year's emerging IT trends

Small data centers, intelligent IT management tools -- digital diversity? Catch up on the 10 trends driving IT operations forward in 2019, and how they'll shape your organization. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

DevOps security model hits organizational snags

DevOps security tools are on the market, and IT pros are acutely aware of the need to update their practices. But alignment with business teams hasn't gotten any easier. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

How can I course-correct my testing career path?

Don't get stuck in QA monotony. Show your technical knowhow and expand your horizons to boost your career -- even if it means throwing out the map. Continue Reading

By

• Gerie Owen, Roobrik

Establish a configuration management strategy to guide transition

Humans are notoriously averse to change in routine -- even when it makes their jobs easier. Encourage innovation and be flexible: Strategy is a journey, not a destination. Continue Reading

By

• Meredith Courtemanche and Jan Stafford

Without DevOps metrics, forget about DevOps glory

DevOps doesn't provide easy comparison points to quantify improvements. So how do you know if you're on the path to success or just spinning your wheels? Continue Reading

By

• Phil Sweeney, Industry Editor

Without DevOps metrics, forget about DevOps glory

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A configuration management plan can unite tools and teams

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Key IT skills to make you current and capable in an ops role

With the rapid pace of IT, it's easy to lose your edge -- even for technologically curious ops professionals. Master a balance of the best IT and people skills to get ahead in modern operations. Continue Reading

By

• Brian Kirsch, Milwaukee Area Technical College

Align KPIs for IT with corresponding business goals

It's easy for IT KPIs to take a back seat to those of the business or vice versa. Instead, explore these ways to maintain a working balance. Continue Reading

By

• Alan R. Earls

Create an IT support process to take on any outage

Every IT incident must be met with a streamlined resolution procedure, all the way from critical to trivial. Ensure those plans are in place before it's do or die. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Kubernetes security vulnerability reveals fractured market

Enterprises that pay for Kubernetes support will respond differently to this week's critical security vulnerability than lean DevOps teams that use upstream distributions. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Embrace these 5 tenets for better QA leadership

Knowledge and hands-on skills are always useful, but successful QA team leads also inspire and stand up for their teams. Here are five ways to remove team obstacles and coach great testers. Continue Reading

By

• Gerie Owen, Roobrik

It's time to automate the help desk ticketing system

The help desk is no admin's favorite job -- and no user's favorite place. But with a little automation and AI, the help desk can become a more palatable experience for both parties. Continue Reading

By

• Muddu Sudhakar, Startup companies

Jira update flexes cloud collaboration features

Atlassian's Jira rework adds collaborative UI updates on the front end and ports Jira Software Cloud to AWS-based microservices on the back end. Continue Reading

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• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Does DevOps for operations mean learning how to code?

What do operations folks need to know before they dive into DevOps? Automation is the key to a responsive environment, and users are your guiding light. Continue Reading

By

• Adam Fowler

SRE model requires technical, organizational optimization skills

Practitioners categorize SRE job descriptions two ways -- by distributed systems architecture design that evolves rapidly, and also by the ability to optimize human workflows. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

DevOps to DevSecOps adjustment banks on cross-group collaboration

It takes collaboration across several levels -- between the C-suite and in cross-functional teams -- to successfully move to DevSecOps and meet compliance requirements. Continue Reading

By

• Will Kelly

Embrace DevOps innovation to modernize legacy applications

To bring legacy applications into the DevOps fold, IT teams must be creative and collaborate in ways that may differ sharply from approaches to greenfield projects. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

DevOps security takes on the dark side of digital transformation

Without better organizational discipline, digital businesses are at risk for massively disruptive data breaches and attacks. Can DevSecOps transform IT in time to avert disaster? Continue Reading

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• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Atlassian shops size up OpsGenie buy, Jira for incident management

Atlassian snapped up OpsGenie and rolled out Jira Ops as part of a shift in focus to IT incident management. Users will follow the strategy cautiously. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Get into DevOps with cross-functional skills and culture

There's no well-traveled path to a DevOps career. But it's not rocket science. Learn how to explain DevOps and master skills, such as CI/CD, and you'll be on your way. Continue Reading

By

• Aymen El Amri

Most jobs in the IT industry pay well, but skills matter

A survey of tech professionals identified which IT skills are most in demand. Find out how salaries compare from region to region, and how expertise affects compensation. Continue Reading

By

• Phil Sweeney, Industry Editor

Emotional intelligence in the workplace makes a difference

Technologists need to know people as well as they know their craft. Applying emotional intelligence in the workplace helps convey ideas and change organizations. Continue Reading

By

• Theresa Neate

Most jobs in the IT industry pay well, but skills matter

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ITSM automation helps advance network automation

IT service management helps close the gap between IT staff and business needs, as artificial intelligence and machine learning work with ITSM automation to usher in network automation. Continue Reading

By

• Amy Larsen DeCarlo, GlobalData

Enterprise IT struggles with DevOps for mainframe

Mainframe automation tools are nascent, and many mainframe experts are reluctant to embrace DevOps. But large enterprises must address legacy platforms to realize app delivery goals. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Atlassian HipChat shutdown surprises enterprise IT pros

IT pros had been skeptical about Atlassian's Stride, but HipChat's disappearance leaves them with lingering questions about licensing and support. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Workplace culture is about cultivating behaviors, not beanbags

To really do DevOps, organizations will have to address and cultivate more effective workflows. It's not as easy as bringing in beanbags and pingpong tables. Continue Reading

By

• Theresa Neate

Is the CTO the new standard for a DevOps leader?

For DevOps initiatives to work, they need support from the C-suite. With more companies focusing on products, not services, is the CTO the flagbearer of DevOps leadership? Continue Reading

By

• David Savage, Harvey Nash Group

Forget the DevOps mindset, and change habits and behaviors instead

DevOps is not a state of mind, but rather a series of behaviors and practices. Expert Rob Lambert explains how a focus on habits can be a DevOps game-changer. Continue Reading

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• Rob J. Lambert, Cultivated Management

DevOps goes to Washington: How DevOps in government works

From procurement to compliance and security, the federal government will face enormous challenges as it brings DevOps on board. Here's how what to expect. Continue Reading

By

• Will Kelly

Self-service automation gives WLA maximum power

Users don't want to wait for an admin to run a report. Admins don't want to drop their work to do it. Set parameters on self-service options and let workers help themselves. Continue Reading

By

• Emily Mell, Former Site Editor

Why personal alignment is the secret sauce in top DevOps teams

It's not magic, exactly, but there is a little-known secret at the heart of successful DevOps teams. Try personal alignment to improve team performance. Continue Reading

By

• Bob Reselman, CogArtTech

DevOps is a culture, but here's why it's actually not

What DevOps needs today isn't more culture or more technology. It needs standards to help companies do a better job with implementation. Expert Aymen El Amri explains. Continue Reading

By

• Aymen El Amri

Why management thinks your DevOps implementation is great

Tech choices and testing are hard in DevOps, according to GitLab's 2018 Global Developer Report. But it turns out DevOps makes management happy. Here's why. Continue Reading

By

• Valerie Silverthorne

A proper DevOps feedback loop includes business leaders

What the modern IT organization needs isn't DevOps -- it's BizDevOps. IT exists to serve the business, but that relationship must be fully reciprocal. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

It's time to convey the value of DevOps to your CFO

Take the DevOps lead and turn your CFO into your organization's strongest DevOps supporter. It's not as daunting as you think. DevOps aligns with business interests. Continue Reading

By

• Will Kelly

Embrace change to make the DevOps operating model succeed

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Seven steps to move a DevOps team into the ML and AI world

Artificial intelligence and machine learning can bring a lot to the software development and deployment table. But patience and experimentation will be key to make it work in an enterprise. Continue Reading

By

• Torsten Volk, Principal Analyst

IT's application support model depends on everyone outside IT

IT wants to reduce application outages, boost performance and make users more productive. The best way to achieve these goals is to welcome outsiders onto the app support team. Continue Reading

By

• Adam Fowler

'Accelerate' with the DevOps Research and Assessment team

DevOps success will require a focus on learning and an expectation of high-performance. The DORA team explains in its new book, 'Accelerate: The Science of DevOps.' Continue Reading

By

• Ryan Dowd, Associate Site Editor

In Google Hangouts Chat, DevOps pros see ChatOps latecomer

Google Hangouts Chat could lead to interesting AI chatbot technology eventually, but G Suite users are already loyal to competitors, such as Slack. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

DevOps incident management turns sys admins into SREs

DevOps practices begin with collaboration on application releases, but it's not until something goes wrong with those apps in production that true transformation takes place. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

IBM roadmap of cloud, AI-enabled IT drives Think conference

IT operations must absorb automation, AI, machine learning and cloud trends, which result in a more data-driven, predictive and responsive department -- if everything goes right. Continue Reading

Want a true DevOps culture change? Start with innovation

The more you fail, the more you learn. That's the secret of really innovative companies and it's the secret to DevOps, too. Expert David Savage explains. Continue Reading

By

• David Savage, Harvey Nash Group

No roadmap? Become your team's DevOps specialist

DevOps should boost delivery and stability. Without a clear roadmap and strategic deployment of DevOps tools though, your organization won't enable continuous delivery. Continue Reading

By

• Matt Heusser, Excelon Development

Help ops to begin a DevOps implementation the right way

DevOps can be difficult to get right, even with lots of experience. For those forging ahead for the first time, however, the hurdles can seem enormous. Stephen Bigelow explains. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Rely on the DevOps methodology to avoid disaster

DevOps concepts rely on both developers and operations to uphold the stability of applications in production. One side can't do it alone. Continue Reading

By

• Brian Kirsch, Milwaukee Area Technical College

Could the DevOps process work better under a different name?

Intent-based DevOps is a small name change designed to bring development and deployment back to basics. Two industry experts offer their interpretations and suggestions. Continue Reading

By

• Valerie Silverthorne

Rely on the DevOps methodology to avoid disaster

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Why not every DevOps strategy is worthy of your attention

DevOps advice is plentiful today. Some, like Cameron McKenzie, would say it is too plentiful. Here's his advice for weeding out the unworkable from the sensible. Continue Reading

By

• Cameron McKenzie, TechTarget

Pluralsight IQ, Stack Overflow boost developer street cred

Tying the Pluralsight IQ skills test to the Stack Overflow Developer Story helps developers measure their technical skills and better highlight them for jobs. Continue Reading

By

• Darryl K. Taft

Forget grassroots: Why the CIO must be today's DevOps leader

DevOps from the ground up sounds like a great idea. Too bad it won't work, at least in an enterprise. David Savage explains why the CIO must lead the DevOps journey. Continue Reading

By

• David Savage, Harvey Nash Group

Three ChatOps examples demonstrate DevOps efficiency

IT collaboration tools are taking center stage in DevOps shops, where they create an environment of connection -- to applications, to peer knowledge and to automation tools. Continue Reading

By

• Kurt Marko, MarkoInsights

Want a DevOps success story? Try employee net promoter score

The more likely an employee is to recommend an employer to a friend, the more likely the company is healthy and successful. Here's how to apply that practice to DevOps. Continue Reading

By

• George Lawton

IT monitoring strategy, org discipline polish Nasdaq DevOps incident response

At Nasdaq, IT monitoring unified different teams' views of infrastructure, but cultural blocking and tackling are equally important to improve incident response. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Are DevOps responsibilities in production unfair to developers?

When Nike.com gave developers live production support responsibilities, the shakeup unearthed fundamental questions about app design and support processes. Continue Reading

By

• Meredith Courtemanche, Director of Editorial Training

It's critical to create the correct DevOps team structure

With new-to-DevOps enthusiasm, some companies go too far when it comes to creating teams or dividing responsibilities. Chris Tozzi outlines the warning signs of too much DevOps. Continue Reading

By

• Chris Tozzi

IT ops pros predict routes to DevOps efficiency in 2018

Operations admins have a lot on their plates already, and they'll pile on more in 2018. These IT pros and analysts share what's coming and how to handle it. Continue Reading

By

• Emily Mell, Former Site Editor

Application support best practices involve all teams

There's more to app support than making sure the bits and bytes are in order; the user's experience is vital to uphold. Creating a smooth process takes more than just operations. Continue Reading

By

• Brian Kirsch, Milwaukee Area Technical College

The future of DevOps in 2018? More people, more integration

From DataOps to function as a service, DevOps adoption is going to mean acquiring some new skills in 2018. Contributor George Lawton asks the experts. Continue Reading

By

• George Lawton

Be wary of DevOps evangelists preaching a culture change

There are many reasons to adopt DevOps, and there are many challenges involved in getting it right. But don't buy into the culture myth that many DevOps evangelists are selling. Continue Reading

By

• Cameron McKenzie, TechTarget

Evaluate ChatOps tools and bots for the right fit

ChatOps is still a niche in IT operations and DevOps shops, but organizations that have set it up love it. That means you should join the fun and give it a try. Here's what you need to know about ChatOps tools. Continue Reading

By

• Kurt Marko, MarkoInsights

Systems thinking principles: Building a DevOps support model

It's time to embrace a DevOps support model. Everything we do has consequences, good or bad. We're interdependent. That's why no team should work in isolation. Continue Reading

By

• Theresa Neate

To build or to buy? That is the DevOps toolchain question

An organization should assess its strengths and weaknesses before choosing a DevOps toolchain. A pre-made pipeline is simpler than individually collected tools, but it sacrifices flexibility. Continue Reading

By

• Kurt Marko, MarkoInsights

ITSM processes must take this chance to help the business

ITSM implementations still have value in today's DevOps world, but only if admins can get their processes aligned with the grander business goals. Continue Reading

By

• Pam Erskine, Jay Stuart and Doug Tedder, ITSM experts

HashiCorp DevOps tools add Sentinel for IT policy management

As DevSecOps grows, policy as code will take over where infrastructure as code left off through new tools such as HashiCorp Sentinel. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

An IT operations job description written for the future

Forward-looking IT ops jobs require more Python and less cable management. To reach valued positions in the IT organization, align your skills with these popular job requirements. Continue Reading

By

• Meredith Courtemanche, Director of Editorial Training

Early adopters of technology belong in every organization

In today's rapidly changing tech environment, avoiding new opportunities means falling behind. Thorough research into newly available tools leads organizations to success. Continue Reading

By

• Meredith Courtemanche, Director of Editorial Training

Rethinking your place on the early adopter curve

The best-run organizations will have a technology infrastructure in place to thoroughly support the business and all its goals. While most companies fall short of that perfection, even an operation that's close to the ideal should feel good about its technological capabilities. The trick is to not feel too good for too long.

An IT environment won't continue to perform at a high level without some help, so it's worth thinking about where you are on the early adopter curve. IT decision-makers should be open to deploying new products and services.

The cover story for this issue of Modern Infrastructure explores the questions around how an IT team should approach new technologies and strategies. The accepted wisdom in most organizations has traditionally been to let the risk-takers chase the latest, coolest thing hitting the market. It was wise, went this way of thinking, to let others figure out if a new product works -- or doesn't. If that tempting new thing proves its value, then the smart money would step up and give the go-ahead for implementation.

But now, as the pace of change in both business and IT continues to accelerate, the greater risk might be to implement a technology too late rather than too early. An organization that is willing to take some risk stands to gain an advantage, possibly a significant one, if it figures out how to capitalize on a fresh technology before its competitors do. For this reason, it might be time to rethink your position on the early adopter curve.

So even if your infrastructure is as good as it can be now, don't get too comfortable. What's true today might not be true tomorrow.

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Early adopters of technology belong in every organization

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Do ops skills fall into an IT engineering job description?

What are some ways to level up from an IT operations or administration role into an IT engineering one? Will my experience in IT operations translate into engineering tasks? Continue Reading

By

• Adam Fowler

Why HR has a key role supporting DevOps skills

If HR isn’t hiring team members fluent in proper skills and familiar with the duties across the delivery chain, then successful DevOps will remain just an ideal. Continue Reading

By

• Grant Hatchimonji

An early adopter, Facebook is still leading DevOps best-practices

Facebook has become a marquee organization by embracing a DevOps-style philosophy. It’s a model worth following, and one companies should follow to compete. Continue Reading

By

• DevOps Agenda Contributor

Release management best practices for every IT team

No one likes an app that implodes once it reaches production. IT operations teams can save themselves some headaches by implementing release management from the initial design on. Continue Reading

By

• Brian Kirsch, Milwaukee Area Technical College

Yahoo, Verizon execs: Prepare your networking team for SDN and DevOps

Enterprises need to prepare networking team members for SDN and DevOps, as the industry continues to change, Verizon and Yahoo said at the ONUG fall conference. Continue Reading

By

• Jennifer English, Editorial Director

Use these DevOps examples to reimagine an IT organization

These before and after DevOps adoption stories from real IT organizations yield insights into processes and tools, metrics for success and mistakes made. Continue Reading

DevOps capabilities vary widely by industry vertical

DevOps isn't the same from one IT shop to another, let alone from healthcare to retail IT. Some verticals rise higher than others when it comes to agility and communication. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

IT service delivery model uses BPM to translate ops to biz

A business process management structure for IT service delivery can bridge the gap between IT and the rest of the business, allowing IT leaders to sit at the table for important decisions. Continue Reading

By

• Kurt Marko, MarkoInsights

CFEngine configuration management tool up close and in-depth

CFEngine is a widely known and used configuration management tool. Learn about its primary features and functions and if and how your organization could benefit from it. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

Inside Docker configuration management functions

Docker may not be a standard configuration management tool, but it possesses a set of capabilities that have made it a growing player in the CM market. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

The Cobbler configuration management tool's ins and outs

Cobbler is a configuration management tool best suited for Linux-based IT environments. Learn more about this tool and if it can benefit your enterprise. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

SaltStack configuration management tools and their many functions

SaltStack is a relatively new tool in the configuration management market with powerful capabilities and an active user community. Read more about this emerging product here. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

What Chef configuration management can do for your IT systems

Chef configuration management tools possess a huge community of users. Learn more about product versions, capabilities, user resources and what Chef can offer an enterprise. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

Select the best configuration management tools for your company

What characterizes the best configuration management tools for your company? Read about the different tools available and which ones would address your company needs the best. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

Decision criteria for choosing configuration management software

Selecting the right configuration management software is vital for your company to function well in this modern age. Learn what you need to know in order to select the best tool. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

Aviva’s annual Hackathon – the customer is key

One insurance company organizes an annual hackathon, where cross-discipline teams form to create features that employees dream up. In 24 hours, it's all over, but the lessons learned persist much longer. Continue Reading

How to implement a solid DevOps team structure

DevOps collaboration can wipe development and operations teams of hostility and negativity. Dashboards and tiger teams turn wartime to peacetime. Continue Reading

By

• Alex Barrett, Modern Infrastructure Editor-in-Chief

How to adopt a successful DevOps enterprise

No two DevOps shops are alike, but there are common threads that run throughout. So what does it take for an IT shop to successfully implement the DevOps culture? Continue Reading

By

• Alex Barrett, Modern Infrastructure Editor-in-Chief

Two critical components of DevOps success

DevOps appears to be the right track for enterprise IT, but it’s a big change in the way things work and won't succeed without these two critical components. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Successful DevOps practices from the start

Here's all you need to know to get started with DevOps, from identifying goals and roadblocks, to useful tools to scale DevOps to the next level. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor