Bengaluru, September 13: In this candid conversation with a seasoned industry leader, we uncover invaluable lessons and strategic insights that have shaped his journey in the dynamic realm of DevOps. With a strong belief in the open-source philosophy, this visionary sheds light on how the open-source community contributes to creating more secure software and preventing vulnerabilities. Additionally, he provides a comprehensive roadmap for aligning DevOps initiatives with overarching business goals, emphasizing the importance of understanding business objectives and prioritizing key initiatives. Furthermore, he shares essential skills that distinguish DevOps practitioners, emphasizing the virtues of lifelong learning and meticulous preparation for potential setbacks.
Join us as we delve into the wisdom of an esteemed senior leader Mr.Vivek Aggarwal who is the Associate Vice President – DevOps & IT for Junglee Games in conversation with Mr.Marquis Fernandes, Business Head – India at Quantic India whilst he is offering a wealth of knowledge for aspiring professionals in the field of DevOps.
Mr. Vivek Aggarwal is a seasoned IT professional with over a decade of diverse experience spanning e-Commerce, Financial, and Telecom domains. A staunch advocate of the open-source philosophy, Mr. Vivek excels in Automation and Infrastructure-As-Code management. His passion lies in creating automated Cloud infrastructure, encompassing architectural design, implementation, administration, and monitoring across various platforms. He has a proven track record in defining DevOps roadmaps, enhancing technology stacks and processes, and actively participates in recruitment and team mentoring.
Q: What have been some valuable lessons in your journey that you would like to impart to others?
Two things really stood out in my life, first : remain resourceful and second : try exceeding the brief
1. Remain resourceful implies – Irrespective of the role an individual is playing, having the attitude of getting things done will play
a key role in one’s growth and learning.
2.Try exceeding the brief – Attempt to deliver little more than what is expected. That is the way to grasp bigger, better opportunities
Q: As a strong believer in the open-source philosophy, how do you see the open-source community contributing to creating more secure software and preventing vulnerabilities?
Open Source software relies on the “Crowdsourcing security” as the code base of the software is open to all, it widens the ability to detect and mitigate the potential vulnerabilities, threats which otherwise is only limited to the developers of the proprietary software. This open collaboration and communication plays a vital role in maturing the security of open-source products
Q: How should one align DevOps initiatives with overall business goals and objectives while creating a roadmap?
1. Understand the Business Goal – First and foremost thing is to understand the business objective, what business intends to achieve. Knowing this will help in setting the macro context. Then you can map DevOps initiatives that will help to achieve those goals
Examples:-
i) Business is aiming to launch new products – (DevOps Initiative > Focus on Automated CI/CD pipelines, Quality
ii) Safeguard from business Risks – (DevOps Initiative > Focus on DevSecOps side , robust BackUp’s , Perimeter Security)
2. Assess the Current state of DevOps – Once we understand the Business priorities, one should assess the current state of the DevOps within the organisation. This can happen via getting feedback from the stakeholders, running DevOps Happiness Survey to get the pulse and reviewing the historical incidents to gauge the current gaps and inefficiencies in the system.
3. Prioritise the initiatives – After completing the Step 1 and 2, one should list down the initiatives and prioritise them. “MoSCoW prioritization” model i have used to define the top priorities and drive them to success for rendering value to the Business
Q:According to a senior experienced leader like you, what should the essential skills of a DevOps practitioner be?
Keeping Technical and communication skills aside, want to emphasise below two traits of DevOps practitioners which can
distinguish from others are
1. Lifelong Learner – DevOps is continuously evolving and there is no definite set of tools /technologies. One has to remain curious and develop
a habit of reviewing, reading the industry trends. DevOps practitioners should remain agile to unlearn and learn in order to stay ahead of the curve
2. Two Mistakes High – This is the phrase I read in one of the articles “Keep your plane two mistakes high.” is used by pilots flying radio control airplanes. In air space, mistakes equate to altitude. If you make a mistake, you lose altitude. You lose too much altitude, and you crash. This same philosophy is also applicable to DevOps practitioners while building highly available applications. Identify the potential failure scenarios in your system, its ramifications and make sure your recovery plan doesn’t have mistaken/shortcomings built into it.
Example: In the event of a database malfunction, ensure that the backups you’ve created are functional and capable of aiding in the recovery process.
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