DevOps has contributed to major advancements across enterprises. With innumerable benefits, it has become a choice in the IT industry for firms of all sizes.
Despite its popularity, DevOps is not a good fit for every company. DevOps adoption or utilization of its practices varies with business objectives, evolving work practices, the industry’s growing needs, and the company’s business culture and compliance practices.
Therefore, DevOps advocates must assess the factors that make a complete DevOps transformation unfavorable for an organization.
According to a consulting and training organization, DevOps principles were meant to create a set of values that companies can adopt based on their requirement. However, some companies have become particular about how it is done.
The consultant explains that only a few DevOps tools or processes are manageable, and each component must be considered critically. Based on the above insights, some scenarios indicate that DevOps does not apply to every organization.
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Let’s take a look:
#Scenario 1: Businesses That Won’t Do Regular Releases
Suppose an organization operates in a business model that doesn’t require frequent releases to serve customer requirements. In that case, it indicates that DevOps may not be an option. This applies to organizations that don’t have regular releases, generate minimal releases, or have no release prospects in the future.
Since DevOps is a process aimed at drastically reducing costs, adding it to the above business models would only increase the organization’s financial burden.
#Scenario 2: Businesses Satisfied with Their Current Software State
It is important to consider the business value that DevOps delivers. While the continuous delivery mechanism is driving faster production cycles, traditional software delivery methods are still meeting the needs of many organizations. In such cases, DevOps transformations seem pointless if they add to the business burden and fail to deliver the desired results.
Whitepaper: DEVOPS: A Successful Path To Continuous Integration And Continuous Delivery
#Scenario 3: Businesses That Operate in a Highly Regulated Industry
DevOps services can be risky to implement in highly regulated environments such as healthcare device manufacturing. Regulations can require significant changes to the DevOps process.
According to research, highly regulated industries prioritize safety over speed, not part of the DevOps philosophy. They believe the cost of fixing a bug is minimal because high performing DevOps teams can roll back changes quickly, before customers notice.
#Scenario 4: Businesses Awaiting Heavy M&A Activity
Even organizations with frequent releases often challenge DevOps implementation, especially those preparing for heavy M&A activity. With such a major transformation in progress, an organization is unlikely to undertake a significant IT shift or make substantial IT investments.
According to Nebulaworks CEO Ciborowski, businesses undergoing Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) activity have end goals that do not align with attempts to change business culture. He recommends a complete focus on automation and measurement initiatives, which can help business objectives on the immediate horizon.
#Scenario 5: Business That Still Rely on Legacy Processes or Architecture
One or more legacy systems, processes, and architectures may remain relevant in the current context. While DevOps can significantly improve the business, the organization is responsible for underlying process issues that can often delay the transformation.
Moreover, using the waterfall delivery model is highly recommended if an organization’s CTO requires direct intervention or the QA staff has limited automation. Overall, it’s the top executives’ responsibility to identify and communicate a clear vision, the real deciding factor in determining the benefits of DevOps for an organization.
Real World Perspective: DevOps for IT Infra and Cloud Migration
While some businesses may face obstacles that hinder DevOps adoption, many others overcome these challenges with the right strategy. Our work with a leading electronics industry client illustrates how effective DevOps implementation focused on IT infrastructure transformation and VM to cloud migration, can turn potential roadblocks into success stories.
Explore the full case study: Implementing DevOps for IT Infra and VM to Cloud Migration in Electronics Industry
Conclusion
All the above scenarios indicate that not all companies can fit the DevOps approach into their organizational structure, and there are times when even DevOps can disadvantage businesses. Therefore, companies need to assess business needs and existing practices before taking the DevOps dive, and partnering with a DevOps services company can help ensure that the transition aligns with their specific goals and infrastructure.
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Additional Resources:
- Amazon Redshift Vs Azure Synapse Analytics: Difference Between Top Data Warehouses
- Top 10 DevOps Engineer Skills That Make A ‘Perfect’ DevOps Engineer
- Building a High Performing DevOps Culture: Strategies and Best Practices for CEOs and CTOs
- Azure DevOps Services for New Age DevOps Professionals
- AWS vs Azure vs GCP: Breakdown of Cloud Migration Services (Infographic