Building or buying DevOps tools can be a tough decision.
Here’s what you need to know before making your choice.
1. Define Your Requirements
Conduct a thorough analysis of your current systems and processes to identify pain points and areas for improvement.
Mind mapping tools like MindMeister or XMind can help you visually map out your requirements and prioritize them.
Another option is to visualize an infrastructure landscape with diagramming software like Miro, Asciiflow or Lucid.
Prioritize your requirements and define the criteria
Try to base it on business impact and also consider feasibility and urgency.
Define clear, measurable success criteria to evaluate the effectiveness of potential solutions.
The SMART framework can help you define clear success criteria that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound.
2. Evaluate In-House Capabilities
Assess your team’s skills and expertise in DevOps tooling
As well as their capacity to take on additional work:
Skills assessments and competency frameworks like the DevOps Institute’s SKIL Framework or DASA team Competency Matrix can help you evaluate your team’s capabilities.
Evaluate your organization’s infrastructure
As well as resources, and budget for building and maintaining custom DevOps tools:
Project management tools like Atlassian Jira, Asana or Trello can help you assess your team’s capacity and track progress.
Consider the potential risks and challenges of building and maintaining your own tools
Such as compatibility issues, lack of support, and technical debt:
Risk management frameworks like ISO 31000 can help you identify and mitigate potential risks associated with building your own DevOps tools.
3. Research Available Options
Research the marketplace
Try to identify third-party DevOps tools and vendors that meet your requirements:
Online research tools like Gartner Magic Quadrant or Forrester Wave, or more specifically ThoughtWorks TechRadar or CNCF landscape, can help you identify and evaluate potential vendors.
Evaluate the features
As well as the functionality, and user experience of each potential solution:
Customer review platforms like G2 or Capterra can provide insights into the user experience of each solution.
Compare vendors
Consider the reputation, customer support, and pricing of each vendor:
Comparative analysis frameworks like SWOT or PESTLE can help you evaluate each vendor’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
4. Consider the Total Cost of Ownership
Estimate the upfront costs
Total cost of ownership (TCO) calculators like those provided by AWS or Microsoft can help you estimate the true costs of each solution over time. Include licensing fees and implementation costs.
Evaluate the ongoing costs
Include the cost of maintaining and supporting each solution, including upgrades, patches, and training.
Consider the potential return on investment (ROI) of each solution
ROI frameworks like the Balanced Scorecard can help you evaluate the potential benefits and cost savings of each solution taking into account the potential benefits and cost savings.
5. Evaluate Vendor Experience
Research each vendor’s reputation in the industry
Pay attention to customer reviews, ratings, and rankings.
Industry reports and analyst evaluations like those provided by Gartneror Forrester can help you evaluate each vendor’s reputation and track record.
Evaluate each vendor’s track record with similar customers
Pay attention to case studies, success stories, and customer references.
Customer reference programs like those provided by Salesforce or Adobe can connect you with other customers who have used the solution.
Consider the quality and availability of each vendor’s customer support
You can use response times, escalation procedures, and training resources as parameters.
Service level agreements (SLAs) and support contracts can help ensure that you receive quality customer support from your vendor.
6. Assess Integration Capabilities
Identify the integration points between the DevOps tools and your existing systems and processes.
Research the available integration options and assess their feasibility, ease of use, and effectiveness.
Consider using tools such as Zapier, Microsoft Power Automate, or Workato to facilitate integration between third-party tools and your existing systems.
7. Consider Security and Compliance
Define your security and compliance requirements, such as data privacy, data residency, and access controls.
Evaluate the security and compliance capabilities of both in-house and third-party solutions.
Consider using security and compliance tools such as Sonatype Nexus, AWS Config, or Microsoft Azure Security Center to manage security and compliance in your DevOps environment.
8. Review Contract Terms
Review the contract terms and negotiate where necessary to ensure they align with your requirements.
Pay attention to the service level agreements (SLAs), warranties, and termination clauses.
Consider using contract management tools such as Icertis, Apttus, or Conga to manage contracts with third-party vendors.
9. Consider Future Scalability
Identify your organization’s expected growth and future needs.
Evaluate the ability of both in-house and third-party solutions to scale with your organization’s growth.
Consider using cloud-based solutions such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud Platform (GCP) to ensure scalability of your DevOps environment.
10. Make an Informed Decision
Document the results of your evaluation process and use them to make an informed decision.
Involve all stakeholders in the decision-making process to ensure buy-in and support for the chosen approach.
Implement the chosen approach, and regularly review and reassess your DevOps tooling strategy to ensure it continues to meet the evolving needs of your organization.
References:
How to choose the right DevOps tools — Work Life by Atlassian
How to find the right DevOps tools for your team by TechBeacon
10 Tips for Evaluating Third-Party DevOps Tools and Vendors by DZone
How to Choose the right DevOps tools by Karl Schwirz | Slalom Technology | Medium
DevOps tech: Empowering teams to choose tools by Google Cloud
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) Calculator by Amazon Web Services