Over the last couple of years the term "DevOps" has become so ridiculously overloaded: an industry trend, a cultural shift, a set of methodologies, a set of tools, an organizational function, ad infinitum. Over the last few years I've gone through a circuitous journey through different roles and functions within several R&D organizations, and would love to share my perceptions on DevOps from a software developer's perspective -- and maybe provide a few insights into how it could be done better. A talk given at Reversim Summit 2014 on 25 February, 2014, video available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35Cz-dTcgTY&list=PLp33GadmS4eW5tlupTkS2uzSb024ig1iB&index=45

2. Full disclosure
• These are my
personal observations
• They do not represent
my past or current
employers’
• And they may be
entirely wrong
– I welcome debate!
– Catch me after the talk

3. What shall we talk about?
ANECDOTES AND
OBSERVATIONS

4. Anecdote #1
STORY OF MY LIFE

5. … in the beginning
• I’ve been programming since forever

6. • … but also interested in hardware, IT…

7. • … and esoterica

8. Enter: Delver
• Where I was happily
banging at code

9. Enter: Delver
• Where I was happily
banging at code
– and at production
systems at 3AM

10. Enter: Delver
• Where I was happily
banging at code
– and at production
systems at 3AM
– every single day

11. Enter: Delver
• Where I was happily
banging at code
– and at production
systems at 3AM
– every single day
• Net result:
– Complete burnout

12. Dramatic Pause
• Next thing you
know…

13. The Reveal
• Next thing you
know…
• This happens

14. • Product pivots ensue…

15. • Product pivots ensue some more…

16. Until finally…
• I couldn’t face another product pivot
• I was left with two options:
– Leave the company
– Do something radically different

17. An experiment
• So it turns out I
actually did a lot of…
–
–
–
–
Production debugging
IT infrastructure
Software infrastructure
Automation

18. An experiment
• So it turns out I
actually did a lot of…
–
–
–
–
Production debugging
IT infrastructure
Software infrastructure
Automation
… and liked it!

19. An experiment
• This was early 2009
– DevOps wasn’t a
“thing” yet
• I had free rein to
define my own job
– And buy-in from our
terrific VPs R&D, Ops
– Thanks, guys!

20. An experiment
• What I ended up doing:
– Specifications for
monitoring, logging
– Deployment automation
– Production support
• Sharing more
responsibility with R&D

21. Observation #1
ENGINEERING IS ENGINEERING
IS ENGINEERING

22. DevOps is at its best
• … when software
engineers develop
an operational bent
• … when system
administrators dig
code

23. QUESTIONS SO FAR?

24. Anecdote #2
• A recruiter once asked me,
– “How should I hire DevOps people?”
• To which I replied…

25. Anecdote #2
• A recruiter once asked me,
– “How should I hire DevOps people?”
• To which I replied…
– “Just stick DevOps in the title. They will come.”

26. Something wondrous happens
• DevOps becomes a
thing!
• Easier to explain
– Others have already
done it better
• Easier to hire
– You’re early out the
gate

27. But then…

28. Remember back, oh, five years?
• QA was considered R&D’s idiot kid brother
– I don’t think that’s the case
– But it was, and to a degree still is, the conception
– At least in Israel
• It became hard to hire for QA
– The candidate pool was saturated
– … and ill-chosen

29. It’s kinda the same
• Everyone needs “DevOps” these days
• But as it gains mainstream acceptance…
– Viable candidates are long gone
– Recruiting can no longer meet demand
– HR agencies are left with one option:
artificially increase the pool

30. Recap
• The best DevOps engineers are already taken.
• But you need them anyway. How to get them?
• A more compelling question is:
– “How should I hire DevOps people who don’t know
what DevOps is?”

31. Recruiting 101
• Should we aim for…

32. Recruiting 101
• Should we aim for…
sysadmins?

33. Recruiting 101
• Should we aim for…
sysadmins?
• Probably not
– Too focused on
infrastructure, IT
– Software eng. and
architecture skills
needed

34. Recruiting 101
• Should we aim for…

35. Recruiting 101
• Should we aim for…
software engineers?

36. Recruiting 101
• Probably not.
– Technology requirements too specific
– Solely focused on software development

37. Recruiting 101
• Maybe we should throw in the towel?

38. Recruiting 101
• Maybe we should throw in the towel?
– and aim for DevOps

39. Recruiting 101
• Maybe we should throw in the towel?
– and aim for DevOps
• Won’t work.
– Only applies to
seniors
– Who are already
taken

40. Observation #2
YOU CAN’T HIRE FOR DEVOPS BECAUSE
DEVOPS IS NOT A ROLE

41. Explain yourself, sir!
• Conway’s law, my interpretation:
“Software architecture inevitably reflects the
structure and process of the organization that
spawned it.”

42. Kicking the hornet’s nest
• Likewise,
“System infrastructure inevitably reflects the
structure and process of the R&D organization it
supports.”

43. Getting to the point
• Architecture and DevOps aren’t roles
• But rather, different views of the
organization
• Both try to model your organization as it
applies to their respective domains
• In other words, they’re aspects

44. Let’s play a game
ANY OF THESE FAMILIAR?

45. Any of these familiar?
• This is Shirley.
• She’s on the QA team.
• She’s got a real knack
for spotting blockers
• Especially just before,
during or after a
deployment

46. Any of these familiar?
• This is Ruth.
• She leads the backend team.
• She knows her Unix
and can handle the
production servers
better than anyone.

47. Any of these familiar?
• This is John.
• He’s the badass team
lead across the hall.
• When shit hits the fan,
he’s always on-board
• And is singlemindedly determined
to get back up and
running

48. What’s in common?
• Every organization has such people
• They perform one or more DevOps
functions
• In other words, you already have DevOps
in your organization
• Does it merit a specialized position?

49. Observation #2, epilogue
• Don’t hire DevOps. Train them.
• You’re looking for smart juniors
– You already know how to spot them
– Challenge them with real responsibility and
watch them grow
– Water frequently
– Profit

50. Takeaways
• Engineering is engineering is engineering
– Same skills, different perspectives
• DevOps is not a role
– It’s incredibly hard to hire DevOps…
– Because we’re doing it wrong
– Focus on the operational challenge, not the
title

51. QUESTIONS?

52. Thank you for your time!
• I love me some feedback!
– Lively debate always
welcome
– Hate mail is cool too
• Get in touch:
– @tomerg
– tomer@tomergabel.com