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A framework for a successful collaboration culture in software development and operations (DevOps) environments

Traditional software development methodologies are historically used for the
creation of software products in separate departments, namely development
and operations departments. The development department typically codes
and tests the software, whilst the operations department is responsible for
its deployment. This siloed arrangement is not aligned to modern practices,
which require a timeous response to changes without necessarily delaying
the product release. DevOps culture addresses this silos problem by creating
an enabling environment for the two departments to collaborate throughout
the software development life cycle. The successful implementation of the
DevOps culture should give an organisation a competitive advantage over its
rivals by responding to changes much faster than when traditional methodologies
are employed. However, there is no coherent framework on how organisations
should implement DevOps culture. Hence, this study was aimed at
developing a framework for the implementation of DevOps culture by identifying important factors that should be included in the framework.
The literature survey revealed that open communication, roles and responsibility
alignment, respect and trust are the main factors that constitute DevOps
collaboration culture. The proposed framework was underpinned by the Information
System Development Model which suggests that the acceptance
of a new technology by software developers is influenced by social norm,
organisational usefulness and perceived behavioural control.
A sequential mixed method was used to survey and interview respondents
from South Africa, which were selected using convenience and purposive
sampling. Statistical analysis of the quantitative data acquired through the questionnaire followed by a qualitative analysis of interviews were undertaken.
The results showed that open communication, respect and trust are
the key success factors to be included in the framework. The role and responsibility
factor was found not to be statistically significant.
This study contributes towards the understanding of factors necessary for
the acceptance of DevOps culture in a software development organisation.
DevOps managers can use the results of this study to successfully adopt and
implement DevOps culture. This study also contributes to the theoretical
literature on software development by identifying factors that are important
in the acceptance of DevOps collaboration culture. / School of Computing / Ph. D. (Computer Science)

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:unisa/oai:uir.unisa.ac.za:10500/27158
Date03 1900
CreatorsMasombuka, Koos Themba
ContributorsMnkandla, E.
Source SetsSouth African National ETD Portal
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis
Format1 online resource (xxiii, 281 leaves) : illustrations (some color), graphs (some color), application/pdf

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