DevOps has been around for a long time now and has changed the way we build software & applications. It is not just beneficial for enterprises, it is also promising lucrative career options for individuals in the field. Usually, when one says DevOps, we think of a developer or a DevOps engineer as the likely career option. However, did you know that there are so many different career paths one can pursue in DevOps and quite lucrative at that too?
In this blog, we shed some light on the different career paths one can pursue in the field of DevOps, what these roles entail, and what basic skills & knowledge you would need to get started on that career path.
The best career paths in DevOps are:
- DevOps Software Tester
- Junior DevOps Engineer
- DevOps Engineer
- DevOps Architect
- DevOps Release Manager
- DevOps Automation Engineer
- DevOps Security Engineer
- DevOps Cloud Engineer
DevOps Software Tester
Every software and application has to be tested thoroughly before going into production and going live. Every software and application has to meet the essential stakeholder requirements. For this, thorough testing of the software or application is indispensable. In a fast-paced DevOps environment, this is the role played by the DevOps Software Tester.
What does a DevOps Software Tester do?
A DevOps Software Tester’s role involves:
- Test planning
- Designing and implementing the frameworks for automated testing
- Designing and implementing the processes and workflows for continuous testing
- Quality assurance (quality control is outdated)
What does one need to be a DevOps Software Tester?
To get started on the career path of a DevOps Software Tester, one needs:
- Familiarity with the concepts of software development, testing, and DevOps
- Thorough understanding of the testing frameworks
- Thorough understanding of the concepts & tools for continuous testing
- Knowledge of frameworks of quality assurance
Junior DevOps Engineer
The role of a Junior DevOps Engineer is the most common position for professionals to get started with a career in the field of DevOps. It is the perfect role for entry-level candidates as well as those making a lateral switch to DevOps. Junior DevOps Engineers work under Senior DevOps Engineers, and the latter is the next step in the career path for the junior role individuals.
What does a Junior DevOps Engineer do?
The role of a Junior DevOps Engineer involves:
- Troubleshooting problems and incidents
- Writing scripts, as required
- Working on the standard system administrative tasks
- Maintaining, monitoring, and improving DevOps processes
What does one need to be a Junior DevOps Engineer?
To get started on the career path of a Junior DevOps Engineer, one needs:
- Thorough understanding of operating systems, cloud infrastructure, and programming languages
- Proficiency in DevOps principles & practices, such as automation, CI/CD pipeline, source code management, monitoring, etc.
- Knowledge of cloud computing concepts, virtualization, scripting languages, etc.
DevOps Engineer
Sometimes, there is no junior or senior role in the DevOps Engineering space. In such cases, there is just one wholesome DevOps Engineer role that would be responsible for the building, maintenance, and enhancement of DevOps processes & infrastructure. A DevOps Engineer would be responsible for ensuring that the software delivery pipeline runs smoothly, efficiently, and without any hassles or bottlenecks. A DevOps Engineer role, in such cases, would not exactly be an entry-level role but more towards being a managerial position, wearing multiple hats on the job.
What does a DevOps Engineer do?
The role of a DevOps involves:
- Writing scripts for deployment
- Testing and debugging the software
- Writing reusable code for the team/enterprise
- Collaborate with multiple teams including developers, security professionals, etc.
- Capturing feedback on mapping the software condition and working on improvements
- Make changes to scripts and codes on the go keeping up with the Agile principles
- Ensure uninterrupted efficient functioning of computer systems and networks
What does one need to be a DevOps Engineer?
To get started on the career path of a DevOps Engineer, one needs:
- Extensive knowledge of scripting and programming languages
- Proficiency in working with configuration management tools
- Well-versed with automation frameworks and Linux environments & shells
- A Bachelor’s degree in software development/engineering/computer programming or similar disciplines
- Excellent soft skills like time management, communication skills, leadership, team player, etc.
DevOps Architect
In an organization, DevOps Architect is the individual responsible for designing and implementing DevOps processes and infrastructure to meet the requirements of the organization.
What does a DevOps Architect do?
The role of a DevOps Architect involves:
- Design and implement DevOps processes & infrastructure to meet enterprise requirements
- Collaborate with developers, operations, security, and other stakeholders to map enterprise requirements
- Build and implement the DevOps strategy for the enterprise
- Ensure that the available infrastructure is in line with what the software/application needs and that it is scalable as well as flexible to keep up with the changing needs
- Design and implement testing systems for the software/application
- Deploy and monitor systems to improve the software development lifecycle
- Choosing new technologies and tools to adopt for improving & optimizing the DevOps pipelines
What does one need to be a DevOps Architect?
To get started on the career path of a DevOps Architect, one needs:
- Knowledge of system administration and infrastructure design
- Well-versed in software development
- Strong understanding of cloud infrastructure, containerization, and orchestration
- Skilled at using automation tools and frameworks for improving & optimizing software delivery
- Knowledge of current and new technologies & trends
- Excellent communication and collaboration skills
DevOps Release Manager
As the name suggests, A DevOps Release Manager manages the release of software/applications ensuring their timely release within the set limits and making optimum use of the allocated resources. They are actively involved in working with development, testing, and operations teams to ensure the smooth deliveries their role facilitates.
What does a DevOps Release Manager do?
The role of a DevOps Release Manager involves:
- Ensuring reliable, predictable, and repeatable delivery of software
- Design, implement, and manage the automated release tasks
- Monitor and manage change requests
- Checking up on changes being made to bring in audibility and control
- Identify risks and take measures to mitigate them
- Design and implement contingency measures
- Keep stakeholders updated about developments
What does one need to be a DevOps Release Manager?
To get started on the career path of a DevOps Release Manager, one needs:
- Solid understanding of release management
- Proficiency in software development
- Well-versed in system administration processes
- Thorough understanding of frameworks & tools used in automation
- Excellent communication skills
DevOps Automation Engineer
As the name suggests, a DevOps Automation Engineer is responsible for automating the software delivery pipeline by streamlining & optimizing the software development lifecycle.
What does a DevOps Automation Engineer do?
The role of a DevOps Automation Engineer involves:
- Design and implement automation frameworks
- Improve efficiency and productivity of the development and operations systems
- Monitor and improve the CI/CD pipeline for automating the SDLC
- Automate the processes using tools for Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC)
What does one need to be a DevOps Automation Engineer?
To get started on the career path of a DevOps Automation Engineer, one needs:
- Solid understanding of DevOps
- Thorough understanding of the software development principles
- Knowledge of automation tools and frameworks, CI/CD tools, and testing frameworks
- Well-versed in using the IaC tools
- Strong communication and collaboration skills
DevOps Security Engineer
DevOps has evolved to usher in the era of DevSecOps, signifying how essential a role security plays, and should play in building software. This has created a huge demand for DevOps Security Engineers who are responsible for ensuring that the software and its supporting infrastructure are secure in every imaginable way, as much as possible.
What does a DevOps Security Engineer do?
The role of a DevOps Security Engineer involves:
- Design, implement, and monitor secure architectures for the software and its supporting infrastructure
- Manage the vulnerabilities in the system
- Safeguard the systems and the enterprise against known and potential threats and risks
- Automate scanning and testing processes
- Work on threat modeling to identify potential threats and risks
- Design and implement suitable effective strategies to safeguard systems and minimize risks
- Updating stakeholders on security-related information and issues
What does one need to be a DevOps Security Engineer?
To get started on the career path of a DevOps Security Engineer, one needs:
- Solid understanding of DevSecOps concepts, security regulations, and frameworks
- Proficiency in vulnerability scanning tools
- Well-versed with automation tools and frameworks
- Knowledge of working with threat modeling frameworks and tools
- Excellent communication and collaboration skills
DevOps Cloud Engineer
A DevOps Cloud Engineer is responsible for serving as a bridge between software development, operations, and management by developing, operating, and managing cloud-based applications and services.
What does a DevOps Cloud Engineer do?
The role of a DevOps Cloud Engineer involves:
- Developing, operating, and managing cloud-based applications and services for the enterprise
- Manage and deliver the infrastructure that supports the cloud-based applications and services
- Collaborate and work closely with developers, operations, and other stakeholders
- Work on ensuring effective and efficient delivery of cloud-based applications and services for the enterprise
- Design, implement, and manage cloud-based solutions for the enterprise
What does one need to be a DevOps Cloud Engineer?
To get started on the career path of a DevOps Cloud Engineer, one needs:
- Strong understanding of concepts of cloud computing
- Proficiency in working with popular public cloud platforms like AWS, Azure, GCP, etc.
- Working knowledge of automation technologies & tools like Kubernetes & Jenkins
- Knowledge of configuration management tools like Puppet and Chef
- Proficiency in scripting languages like Python, Ruby, etc.
- Excellent communication and collaboration skills
- Outstanding team player
- Ability to work in fast-paced environments
- Highly deadline conscious
These are the top eight roles and career paths that individuals interested in building a career in DevOps can embark on. To get started, you can earn a DevOps certification to add to your resume which will teach you all the important skills and concepts that you need to know to begin a career.
Learn DevOps to become a better IT leader
Enroll in Cognixia’s DevOps Training to strengthen your career. Take a step to boost your career opportunities and prospects. Get into our DevOps certification course that is hands-on, collaborative, and instructor-led. Cognixia is here to provide you with a great online learning experience, assist you in expanding your knowledge through entertaining training sessions, and add considerable value to your skillset in today’s competitive market. Individuals and the corporate workforce can both benefit from Cognixia’s online courses.
Regardless of your familiarity with IT technology and procedures, the DevOps Plus course gives a complete look at the discipline, covering all critical ideas, approaches, and tools. It covers the fundamentals of virtualization, its advantages, and the different virtualization tools that play a vital part in both learnings & implementing the DevOps culture, starting with a core introduction to DevOps. You’ll also discover the DevOps tools like Vagrant, Containerization, VCS, and Docker, as well as Configuration Management using Chef, Puppet, SaltStack, and Ansible.
This DevOps course covers intermediate to advanced aspects. Get certified in DevOps and become acquainted with concepts such as the open-source monitoring tool Nagios, including its plugins, and its usage as a graphical user interface. The Advanced DevOps fundamentals are discussed in full and Docker container clustering leveraging Docker Swarm & Kubernetes in the CI/CD Pipeline Automation.
Our online DevOps training covers the following concepts –
- Introduction to DevOps
- GIT: Version Control
- Maven
- Docker – Containers
- Puppet for configuration management
- Ansible
- Nagios: Monitoring
- Jenkins – Continuous Integration
- Docker Container Clustering using Docker Swarm
- Docker Container Clustering using Kubernetes
- Advanced DevOps (CI/CD Pipeline Automation)
Prerequisites
This course requires just a basic grasp of programming & software development. These requirements are helpful but not compulsory because this all-inclusive training is aimed at newcomers and experienced professionals.
