DevOps Journeys - Guest blog with Melisa Pinto

“AI is making teams more proactive by automating tasks and predicting potential issues.”

This insight from Melisa Pinto at PwC sets the stage in our latest guest blog for a deeper exploration of how AI is redefining the DevOps landscape.

From the transformative impact of AI-driven automation and predictive monitoring to the balancing act of embedding security seamlessly into workflows, this blog dives into the cultural shifts, platform engineering challenges, and the evolving role of sustainability in shaping the future of DevOps.

DevOps has transformed the way organisations build, deploy, and manage software. In your experience, how has the DevOps landscape evolved in recent years, and what do you see as the most significant shifts driving its growth and adoption today?

The biggest shifts in DevOps right now are all about working smarter and faster. Automation is key, with CI/CD pipelines making it easier to go from code to deployment with fewer hiccups. Kubernetes and cloud-native tools have become the go-to for managing and scaling apps. Infrastructure as Code is now more mature, helping teams keep things consistent and under control. Security is built in from the start with DevSecOps, not tacked on at the end. Plus, AI and Machine Learning are starting to play a role in predicting problems and automating routine tasks. These changes are driving more teams to adopt DevOps, making collaboration better and delivery quicker.

With the growing adoption of AI and machine learning in DevOps, how do you see AIOps transforming traditional practices, and how are you incorporating these technologies into your processes?

AI and Machine Learning are starting to really push DevOps forward, especially with code templating. Right now, I’m focused on how AI can take automation up a notch by streamlining the creation of code templates. With AI-driven templates, we can cut down on repetitive coding tasks, ensuring consistency and reducing errors across projects. It’s about having a solid starting point where teams can quickly build on reliable, well-tested code rather than reinventing the wheel each time.

Although it’s still early days, this approach is already speeding up development and improving code quality, setting us up nicely for even more advanced automation in the future.

How are you leveraging platform engineering to enhance developer experience and streamline operations? What challenges and benefits have you encountered in implementing this approach?

Platform engineering has really helped us improve the developer experience and streamline operations. By building a unified platform for common infrastructure and tasks, we’ve enabled developers to focus on coding and delivering features, rather than dealing with repetitive setup. It’s also brought more consistency across environments and made onboarding smoother.

The biggest win has been a boost in productivity—developers can now use self-service tools and workflows to get things done faster. That said, it hasn’t been without its challenges. A key challenge has been avoiding over provisioning—ensuring we provide the right tools without overwhelming developers with unnecessary options. It took some trial and error to strike the right balance between flexibility and simplicity. We aimed to make the platform robust yet straightforward, so developers get the benefits without feeling burdened by unnecessary complexity.

With the increasing emphasis on developer productivity and autonomous teams, how do you balance self-service models with governance and security requirements?

Balancing self-service with governance and security is about giving teams the freedom to move quickly while keeping everything under control. We’ve implemented automated policies that manage security and compliance in the background, so developers don’t have to think about them, but they’re still covered.

We’ve also established clear guidelines, nothing too restrictive, just enough to ensure everyone stays on the right path. It’s all about allowing teams to focus on their work without compromising on security or compliance.

As the need for continuous compliance grows, how are you integrating security into their CI/CD pipelines, and what strategies are you using to ensure compliance in dynamic cloud environments?

As the push for continuous compliance ramps up, companies are getting better at baking security into their CI/CD pipelines. They're shifting left, so security checks happen early on, with automated scans during builds to catch vulnerabilities before anything hits production.

In cloud environments, they're using tools like Terraform to lock in security policies across the board through Infrastructure as Code. Compliance as Code is also gaining traction, where the rules are hardwired into the deployment process, ensuring everything stays compliant by default. Continuous monitoring and automated audits are key for spotting any compliance drift as it happens. By integrating these strategies into their CI/CD pipelines, companies are managing to keep security and compliance tight without slowing down development.

In the era of GitOps and Infrastructure as Code, how do you ensure best practices for version control, automation, and consistency across environments?

In the world of GitOps and IaC, it’s all about keeping things simple and consistent. We stick everything in Git, so there’s one place for all our changes and no guesswork. Automation handles the deployments, which means fewer mistakes and no surprises between environments. We use the same templates everywhere, from dev to production, so everything stays aligned. Regular checks and automated tests help us catch any issues early, keeping things running smoothly without any fuss.

As sustainability becomes increasingly important in tech, how are you integrating GreenOps practices into your DevOps workflows? What strategies are you using to optimise energy efficiency and reduce environmental impact while maintaining high performance?

To be honest, GreenOps is something we’re aware of, but it hasn’t fully taken root in our DevOps workflows yet. While we haven’t implemented many specific strategies for energy efficiency, we’re starting to pay more attention to areas like optimising cloud resource usage to avoid waste. There’s definitely room for improvement, especially in making more deliberate choices about the infrastructure we use and how we can reduce our environmental footprint. It's on our radar, but we’ve got a way to go before it’s fully integrated into our day-to-day operations.

What are some of the most common reasons DevOps initiatives fail, and what lessons have you learned from these failures that could help others avoid similar pitfalls?

DevOps initiatives often stumble for a few key reasons. One big one is not getting everyone on the same page. If the team doesn’t fully buy into the DevOps culture, like breaking down silos and working together, the whole thing can fall flat. It’s not just about the tools; it’s about changing how people work.

Another pitfall is trying to do everything at once. Rushing to automate without a solid base usually ends up with brittle systems that cause more headaches than they solve. Starting small, proving the value, and then scaling up is the way to go.

Looking ahead, how do you envision the future of DevOps evolving over the next few years? What emerging technologies, practices, or cultural shifts do you believe will have the biggest impact on the way we approach DevOps?

I see DevOps evolving in some interesting ways over the next few years. One major shift will be the deeper integration of AI and Machine Learning. We’re already using AI for things like predictive monitoring and automating repetitive tasks, but I think it’ll go further, with AI helping make decisions and optimising workflows in real-time.

Another trend to watch is platform engineering. As organisations look to streamline operations and boost the developer experience, there’s likely to be a bigger push towards building internal platforms. These will offer standardised tools and environments, helping teams move faster while keeping things consistent and secure.

If you could automate one aspect of your job or daily routine - no matter how mundane or outrageous - what would it be and why?

If I could automate one thing, it would definitely be housework! Imagine having a system that handles all the cleaning, laundry, and tidying up without me having to lift a finger. It’s not the most exciting part of the day, and I’d much rather spend that time on something more enjoyable or productive. Plus, having a perfectly clean and organised home without the effort would be a total game-changer!

To hear Melisa's insights compared with 7 other industry leaders, download DevOps Journeys 4.0 today. DevOps Journeys provides a roadmap to navigate evolving challenges and stay ahead of the curve.

Whether you’re advancing your DevOps skills or initiating digital transformation, this resource is invaluable for every DevOps enthusiast.