A New DevOps Model forSuccess in the Digital AgePresenting O’gile, Orion’s Methodology forEmpowering Enterprise Adoption of DevOps

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he accelerated move to digital business—and all

the technologies that support it—is also driving

adoption of the DevOps model Tfor software development.

But making a successful transition to DevOps means IT

and technical leaders must overcome many challenges.

This paper outlines those issues and presents

O’gile—Orion’s comprehensive DevOps methodology

designed to help companies transition to the digital age. `

The Challenges Around DevOps Organizations today must reimagine and rede-velop

many business activities—effective processes for

software development and deployment among them.

Software development in organizations has started to

become more agile with a faster time to market—be it

internal or external-facing applications. Also, the number

of stakeholders has significantly increased—with

business, technology, and third-party vendor

ecosystems. Given this changing nature, the appeal of

DevOps for addressing these challenges is clear; why

wouldn’t a company just adopt this methodology?

Because it is easier said than done. Successful adoption

of DevOps means organizations must be prepared for

changes in roles, resources, processes, and culture.

In one IDC study, Fortune 1000 companies cited cultural

inhibitors, fragmented processes, and lack of executive

support as the biggest barriers for DevOps

implementation. Other typical challenges include lack of

a clear vision for how to implement DevOps, limited

knowledge about available tools, and difficulty in

choosing and integrating those tools.

A NEW DEVOPS MODEL FOR SUCCESS IN THE DIGITAL AGE 2

“The reality of DevOps is that while enterprises

aspire to move quickly and efficiently with their software

operations, we’re seeing that many don’t even know

where to start to navigate the internal shifts that need to

happen to create a DevOps mindset,” says Raj Patil, CEO

at Orion Business Innovation.

The right DevOps strategy can make a big difference in

how a company shifts its culture and processes.

“The answer isn’t one model versus another.

Instead, a combination of aspects is best—and O’gile

offers that,” says Pradeep Menon, executive vice

president and head of delivery for Orion Business

Innovation.

Traditional Approaches to DevOps The traditional “waterfall” methodology—with its

sequential design-develop-test-deploy activity—is

typically too slow and cumbersome for digital business

needs. On the other end of the spectrum is the agile

development model, which dates back to the 1990s, and

addresses communication gaps between customers and

developers.

The emergence of DevOps in the last decade was also

aimed at addressing gaps between software developers

(Dev) and IT operations/infrastructure (Ops). DevOps is

an end-to-end model based on increasing efficiencies and

automation across the software lifecycle, from planning

and coding, to testing and refinement, to implementation

and enhancement.

DevOps delivers several benefits for development teams,

the IT department, and the enterprise as a whole:

Faster time-to-market as well as improved

flexibility, quality, and resiliency for initial software

and ongoing enhancements

Improved collaboration among all stakeholders,

from project planning through deployment

Reduced rate of failed releases and faster recovery

from release issues

Cost and time savings for training when an

improved user experience guides application

development

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The DevOps model relies on frequent software releases,

continuous integration and deployment, automated

acceptance testing, and many small proof-of-concept

projects throughout the development process. Project

teams become self organizing and self-operating, with

the goals of accelerating development times and

delivering software that is closely aligned with business

objectives.

A Better Model for DevOps

The DevOps model has continued to evolve, especially

with the rollout of increasingly large and challenging

DevOps projects over the last decade. Orion Business

Innovation, a global leader in DevOps, has successfully

executed complex global software projects for large

enterprise clients—and in the process has created its

own delivery methodology, called O’gile. This

methodology combines the best practices of agile and

waterfall models with Orion’s own experience to improve

and accelerate software development.

(See table 1).

“The answer isn’t one model versus another,” says

Menon. “Instead, a combination of aspects is best—and

O’gile offers that. It’s also about getting the agility in

development models to cater to short-turnaround

engagements and larger engagements and with the

flexibility of making changes to adhere to business

requirements.”

“The answer isn’t one model versus another.

Instead, a combination of aspects is best

— and O’gile offers that.”

Pradeep MenonExecutive VicePresident and

Head ofDelivery for

Orion Innovation

More sustainable lifecycle for digital products and

services created by close ties between software

development and IT operations

Better ability to recruit and retain development

staff because DevOps leverages current

technologies, work practices, and agile teams

A NEW DEVOPS MODEL FOR SUCCESS IN THE DIGITAL AGE 3

Table 1 | Traditional Waterfall Model vs. Orion O’gile Model

Traditional Development Model

Siloed development teams and practices

Infrequent, fixed-date software releases

Limited flexibility for changing softwaredesign or functionality from specifications that may be outdated

Difficult to meet committed release dates without struggle

Lack of clear ownership for quality of processes and deliverables makes it difficult to resolvedevelopment and deployment issues

Process failures

Challenges for meeting agreed-upon project budget

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Orion O’gile DevOps Model

Global delivery methodology and process with growth mindset

Self-organizing and self-operating teams (this has a big emphasis on how teams behave as a group, how they can work collaboratively, and how their collective strength covers individual weaknesses)

Continuous integration and continuous deployment of new software releases

Custom agile methodology developed by Orion

Quality software engineering and assurance with true automation

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Orion O’gile Core PhilosophyThe core philosophy of the O’gile model brings clarity

to the project life cycle.

Every model has its advantages. Orion has taken the

best of the best—the combination of various Agile

methodologies, including safe agile and lean method-

ology, the maturity of the waterfall model, the process

efficiencies of the ITL model, and the strong gover-

nance of the CMMI model to create its O’gile model.

The principles under which the team works can be

best represented by

DevOps has been talked about in various contexts.

But along with having a methodology, success

lies in measuring the outcome, quality of projects

delivered, and improvements in process.

This measurement has been made possible by

Conscious™, Orion’s proprietary portfolio management

software for project visibility, governance,

and management. The Conscious™ platform is an

innovative framework that combines customized

tools, business intelligence, and statistical models

for managing the various programs and projects

available under a portfolio.

Conscious™ has been instrumental in accelerating

the delivery of large, complex software projects

for Orion, as it addresses key DevOps challenges

around fragmented processes, effective program

and project management, and efficient tracking of

program health.

Conscious™ brings order to complex jobs under a

continuous delivery framework inclusive of people,

processes, and technologies.

Orion delivery management and governance

software for project visibility, governance, and

management

Daily achievements and risk management

Transparency and predictability using artificial

intelligence and machine learning

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Conscious™ in short is a measurement engine with

a long list of capabilities (see graphic, next page).

“Conscious™ brings order to

complex jobs under a

continuousdelivery

frameworkinclusive of

people,processes, andtechnologies.”

A NEW DEVOPS MODEL FOR SUCCESS IN THE DIGITAL AGE 4

Assessing Readiness for DevOps ProjectsThere are two steps that IT leaders must take to

determine whether they are ready to adopt a DevOps

model. The first: identify the business objectives and

needs that must be supported by software development,

both now and in the future.

For example, companies should ask:

Are business and IT aligned on business

objectives? Are both open for cultural shifts and

new ways of working together?

What are the current and future strategies and

demands of digital business activity? What are

the localized and regional needs?

What governance, compliance, and security

requirements are essential?

Which legacy systems will need modern

replacements?

How will development metrics and measurement

criteria show the value obtained from DevOps?

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With a clear picture of what DevOps will do for

the business, the second step is assessing the four

essential dimensions of a DevOps environment.

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Sta�ng. Although overall staffing levels may

not change with the move to DevOps, developer

roles and team membership likely will. IT leaders

must assess the current skill set as a whole and

create a strategy to align needs and fill gaps.

Identify how developers will acquire new skills and

training, especially for meeting the user experience

requirements of digital and mobile business

applications.

Resources. Identify the operational resources

and development tools that will be needed to

support a DevOps environment.

Governance. Faster software development

must still comply with enterprise governance

and compliance standards, especially for data

use and data protection. Review governance

practices and principles to determine which

will need updates.

Culture. Understand the new perspectives,

practices, and measurements that will change

how work is done by individual developers and

teams. Encourage collaboration among development

and line-of-business (LOB) teams when

designing the functionality and user experience

of new applications. Additionally, communicate

leadership support to reduce the perceived

risk of—and promote acceptance of—making

changes and pursuing innovation.

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“DevOps is reallyabout leadership

that drives theculture and

mindset changethe organization

will need in order

to work in a newway

successfully.”

Pradeep MenonExecutive VicePresident and

Head ofDelivery for

Orion Innovation

A NEW DEVOPS MODEL FOR SUCCESS IN THE DIGITAL AGE 5

By taking astrategic

approachto adoptingthe DevOps

model, softwaredevelopment

andIT operations

can fully realizeits potentialfor enablingthe benefitsof business

transformation.

DevOps the Orion WayOrion can help organizations optimize their

DevOps with services that include:

Developing a business case for the DevOps

endeavor

Evaluating existing practices, processes, and

tools usage and relevancy

Developing, in partnership with your team, a

comprehensive DevOps road map that covers

continuous development, integration, deployment,

and delivery

De�ning an IT operating model based on

DevOps best practices

Piloting a DevOps implementation for select

project(s)

Implementing a 360-degree continuous delivery

framework inclusive of people, processes, and

technologies

Analyzing and measuring results of the pilot

using Orion’s analytical expertise to refine

implementations

Creating a DevOps playbook to be used as

bestpractice guidelines for other DevOps projects

Reporting results on an ongoing basis to all

stakeholders

Providing platform support and using the

Softwareas-a-Service (SaaS) approach, including the

cloud

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“It’s important to understand that DevOps isn’t just

about doing software development in short sprints

with everything in the cloud,” says Menon. “DevOps

is really about leadership that drives the culture and

mindset change the organization will need in order

to work in a new way successfully.”

De�ning a Strategy for the DevOps TransitionA company’s strategy should encompass several things:

The perspective of how the organization will

manage the transition

Details regarding how it will enable the work of

individual employees and teams

Management perspective on clarity of purpose

and plan for moving to DevOps

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Work perspective including a new understanding

of how teams and individuals behave within the

organization, how developers work as individuals

and together in teams, and the criteria for

recognizing good work

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Two additional criteria are also essential in building a

DevOps strategy: 1) defining how high-quality

development output will be measured and

2) developing design criteria that will produce

improvements in software usability. Orion creates a

DevOps road map to optimize business operations and IT

projects through collaboration and a 360-degree view of

development and implementation. This road map can

help companies refine their own DevOps strategy.

The Bottom LineA business can view DevOps as a disruptive

change—or as an invigorating path to transformational

new opportunities. By taking a strategic approach to

adopting the DevOps model, software development and

IT operations can fully realize its potential for enabling

the benefits of business transformation.

For more information on the O’gile DevOps model

and adoption of best practices,

visit https://www.orioninc.com/devops/

or email info@orioninc.com.

About Orion

Orion Innovation is a premier, award-winning, global

business and technology services firm that provides

business solutions rooted in Digital Strategy,

Experience Design, and Engineering, delivering

game-changing business transformation and

product development for their clients. With a unique

combination of agility, scale and maturity, Orion has

a team of over 4,000 associates in 8 major delivery

centers across the Americas, Europe, and APAC.

Orion’s mission is to be an agile and trusted partner

for business transformation initiatives, providing

deep emerging technology, digital design and

domain expertise. Orion has served Fortune 1,000

enterprises for over 25 years with clients across

financial services, professional services,

telecommunications and media, automotive,

industrial automation, professional sports and

entertainment, life sciences, ecommerce and

education. For more information,

visit www.orioninc.com or email us

at info@orioninc.com.