Principles that every Chief Information Officer (CIO) needs to Adopt for DevOps Acceleration

By Veritis

Principles that every CIO needs to Adopt for DevOps Acceleration

The role of the Chief Information Officer or CIO has evolved a great deal in recent times. Cloud, digital transformation, new data laws, and DevOps have redefined the CIO’s role. The new aspects of the CIO don’t just affect the people in the C-Suite, but it also affects the people across the organization.

CIOs’ are the executives expected to transform the company with the relevant technologies. , there were a lot of expectations for the CIOs.’ Given the number of variations in the technologies, coupled with the dearth of communication loops, there were no fixed criteria for what all the CIOs had to do. Sometimes, if not often, the CIOs would be thrown under the bus for a failed technical strategy.

The resulting friction would increase expenses for all and frequent CIO replacements. A failed tech strategy will saddle the organization with unwanted resources regardless of the CIO. In the scenario wherein a new CIO is roped in, the company would likely get carried away by the enthusiasm of a different vision which may not always work.

While the world is adopting new approaches, three approaches are primarily: Waterfall, Agile, and DevOps. DevOps is one of the key strategies which CIOs’ are increasingly favoring. While DevOps has spawned DevSecOps and other variations, the underlying principles of DevOps continue to propel productivity in every approach.

While DevOps has bettered the production approaches, it is a complex process that demands attention. A CIO must be on top of everything from CI/CD tools to varied approaches to implementing DevOps on AWSAzure, and GCP. In addition, the officer must oversee the product cycles and brief the management about the pertaining requirements.

A CIO should encourage productivity in the IT team and reassure the stakeholders of their production. Due to these requirements, DevOps is one of the most promising approaches that a CIO can opt for. One can argue that Waterfall and Agile are proven formulae that helped companies succeed.

However, in this day where erring proves to be costly, DevOps is the one strategy that would essentially remove the potentiality for glaring errors which would cripple an entire solution. Additionally, the cons of the robust strategies, Waterfall and Agile, outweigh the pros. Thankfully, that is not the case with DevOps.

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Why Should the CIO favor DevOps?

Why Should the CIO favor DevOps?

DevOps has sped up things quite considerably. While it bears semblance to Agile, it is superior to the other two methods as perennial reviews are ingrained at every crucial stage.

The CI/CD pipeline fosters refinement of the solutions through cohesive collaboration. Additionally, this is the fastest route that allows an organization to realize automation with robustness. Without using much grey matter, one can conclude that automation saves time and executes tasks of various magnitudes with little to no error.

One of the other advantages is the increased integration capabilities, which is pertinent as organizations are increasingly leaning towards multi-cloud strategies. DevOps frees up all of the time will allow the organizational employees to focus better on approaches that can be bettered. In a nutshell, the constant reviews, faster rollout of products, and various other benefits, DevOps will be the approach that would help a CIO achieve the organizational goals. 

Principles which the CIOs’ should stick to 

Every company wants to scale new heights, which would take them all to the next level. Due to the responsibility, there are chances that a CIO would get carried away and weave a strategy that would be modeled on criteria that would backfire. It is pertinent to strategize with a grounded mindset that would not create counterproductive results. 

Bid Goodbye to Legacy Systems 

The ever-evolving world is various outdating infrastructures. Robust systems are rendered obsolete after new and advanced infrastructure comes into place. However, companies continue to use these outdated, legacy systems for various reasons, ranging from investment to continuity. The reliance on these outdated systems is not wise as they are no longer as flexible as they were, especially in the age where Agile and DevOps are ruling the roost.

Additionally, the swift rollout of DevOps products demands automation and heavy testing in different environments. The perennial testing and betterment of the code and products cannot be delayed by saddling them with legacy systems that take ages to process and churn out the relevant results.

Instead, the CIO should research which IT resources are modern enough to support the potential and emerging requirements of the enterprise. One of the criteria is to ensure the infrastructures will be flexible enough to promote productivity.

A few of the other aspects which should motivate you to ditch the legacy systems is that the world is integrating with AI and Machine Learning at an increased rate. With augmented reality and virtual reality gaining momentum, the call of the hour is to upgrade the infrastructure with due preparation and assessment.


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Better Integration for Cloud

Better Integration for Cloud

The world is moving to the cloud, and DevOps implementation is made easy with cloud integration. Multiple tests, code changes, collaboration, and decreased latencies are required to make a DevOps strategy successful. However, as is with everything, there are some typical obstacles a CIO needs to watch out for.

Compatibility issues crop up when you decide to lift and shift. It is crucial to appreciate that there will be teething troubles whenever you adopt a new strategy. The same is the case with clouds when you dive in for the first time. MSPs’ are roped in to ensure a seamless transition. However, choosing an MSP is a difficult task as it most often loads an organization with unwanted resources and high expenses. Veritis is a gem in the rough as it doles out customized, cost-effective solutions which don’t cut corners on performance.

The other impediment that migration brings on is cloud illiteracy. Post-migration, it is better for all to handhold the DevOps team during the initial period of the journey. As it is difficult for one individual to do this, the CIO will have an easier time delegating an MSP to do it.


Useful Link: A Guide to DevOps Implementation on Google Cloud


Stay alert for emerging solutions

Stay Alert for Emerging Solutions

Innovation shall never stop, and new technologies and methodologies will come up at any given time. The CIO should never stop looking for new solutions which can amp up production. However, the CIO should bear in mind not to fix something that’s not broken but only better the aspects where refinement is required. One can mitigate this tightrope walk by answering a few questions.

Firstly, will the new technology or solution support the core functionalities of your existing infrastructure? That should be the first question the CIO should objectively assess. Essentially, the addition should bolster your IT team and not set them back technologically.

Secondly, factor in the cost quotient. The emerging tech should make things less expensive and not boost the expenses. And what’s more, is that the new technology should be added promptly. If you waste too much time, the advanced technology will become a legacy system.

Lastly, you should not add a new technology just because it exists. There is a lot of hype surrounding new development, but one should assess whether it is required or not. Everyone may jump on the bandwagon, but it is pertinent to understand whether you need it and how valuable it would be to the company.

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In Conclusion

Chief Information Officer (CIO) 

The role of a CIO is complex and vital as he is responsible for the company’s productivity and infrastructure. While many variations have emerged for the CIO’s role, the underlying essence is to keep the company future-proof. In the day where IT giants are biting the dust, just because they refused to acknowledge the changing times, it is essential not to rely on legacy systems and outdated production methodologies beyond a certain point.

However, the task of upgrading seamlessly is easier said than done. Concerns and issues crop up within no time, and these issues make Fortune 500 and emerging enterprises rope in Veritis.

As a reputed MSP, Veritis has doled out services that are customized as per the client’s requirements. These cost-effective solutions are robust and are the ones that would allow using your untapped potential. 

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