The second principle of DevOps extends the first. (Customer Centric Action) We focus on understanding the real needs of the customers and working towards creating products and services that solve problems and adds value. The principle considers taking a holistic view of both the creation and use of the product or service.
If you do not know where you are going, you will not know whether you lost the way. Create with the end in mind brings focus on the end results. This will foster the product, service thinking, and collaboration, which is one of the key ingredients to DevOps. However, it requires an engineering mindset and mutual trust among different teams and team members.
A focus on the end goal does not mean a contradiction to the agile iterative approach. In fact it supports it. This principle emphasises a "product" team who is responsible for the entire working product sold to real customers. MVP's (Minimum Viable Products) are considered products that are to be sold to customers. Feedback and minimal hand-off flows ensure rapid improvement with the intent to not only meet the intended goal but to add in-conceived value.
There are ways to assist in ensuring this principle is upheld.
Set Sprint Goals
Set Release Goals
Refine DoD (Definition of Done)
Honour a Team Mission Statements
Publish Achievements
Not everyone will understand this concept initially. We are trained and nurtured to be great at one role so expecting a developer, tester, business analyst, cloud engineer or delivery manager to focus on the success of a product rather than the work to deliver it can be challenging. Which is why teamwork, support, education and mentoring is vital.
Paul Mateos
Solutions Consultant | Pufferfish Solutions
paulmateos@pufferfish.solutions
To Learn more about the 6 Core principles of DevOps, please visit www.pufferfish.solutions/training or contact us today at info@pufferfish.solutions