Every DevOps enthusiast faces the same challenge at some point: you know DevOps works, your team knows it works, but the decision makers want proof. They want a business case. In this talk at ContainerDays 2019, I break down a practical framework for convincing CIOs and managers to fund your DevOps transformation.
The Current State of IT#
Today’s enterprises struggle with a familiar set of problems. There is technical debt in the application landscape, the infrastructure, and the applications themselves. Silos are not working together but fighting against each other. There is a culture that does not accept risk and innovation. Trust is lacking. And on top of everything, there are constant cost cuts: do more with less money.
Decision makers say they want DevOps. But when you talk to them about the DevOps core values (accountability, trust, empowerment, continuous improvement, customer centricity), they nod along. When you explain the DevOps targets (more frequent releases, faster deployments, improved mean time to recovery, shorter lead time for bug fixes, faster experimentation), they get excited. Then they ask: “Does this DevOps thing cost anything? Because we have cost cuts.” And when you confirm it does, they say: “So tell me, what is the business case?”
What Is a Business Case?#
A business case divides benefits and chances by costs and risks. If the result is positive, you should proceed. If negative, you should not. And if you get a division by zero, you should debug that business case.
For decision makers, one question matters above all: when do they get their return on investment? That is the point where the investment pays for itself and they can reinvest the money into new initiatives. You need to show them exactly when that happens.
Where Value Is Generated#
This is the most critical concept to understand. In a typical value chain, an idea becomes a user story, gets implemented, deployed, and released to the customer. During the entire chain from idea to release, no value is generated. Value is only generated when the feature or product reaches the customer, when they use it and pay for it.
“During the whole value chain, no value is generated. Only when the feature or product is at the customer site is value generated.”
The money customers pay flows back as earnings, which can be reinvested into new ideas that flow through the value stream again. The DevOps investment comes from taking some of this money and using it to improve the lead time of the value chain, instead of putting all of it into new features.
The Time Value of Money#
The economic concept of Time Value of Money states that a Euro today is always worth more than a Euro tomorrow. The implication is clear: you should invest as early as possible because of the earning capacity in the future.
Without DevOps, large enterprises typically have three-month release cycles. During those three months, features flow through definition, implementation, and deployment, but no value is generated. Only after the three-month release does the customer start using features and paying for them. In this example, the return on investment might come about two months after release, so five months total.
With DevOps, you deliver value to the customer faster. Release cycles shrink. Smaller features reach the customer sooner. The return on investment arrives earlier. And this faster return enables you to reinvest into either new ideas or further DevOps transformation.
The Reinvestment Cycle#
The starting point is simple: invest some of the money that could go into new ideas into improving the value stream. Improve the lead time. Once improved, you have a faster value stream from definition through implementation to deployment. You can release more often, bring features to customers faster, and achieve faster return on investment.
This creates a compounding cycle. Each improvement funds the next. Each faster return on investment enables more DevOps investment. The value stream keeps getting faster, and the gap between you and competitors who are not doing DevOps keeps growing.
“Focus on fast value generation. With that, not only your product will be successful, the whole enterprise will be successful.”
The Real Winners#
When you get this cycle going, everybody wins. The enterprise becomes more successful because it generates value faster. Customers are happy because they get features quickly. And the money keeps flowing, enabling continuous improvement.
This is the tool you need to convince your decision maker. Do not talk about abstract values and practices. Show the business case: invest in shortening the value stream, generate value faster, achieve faster return on investment, and reinvest the returns. It is a simple, compelling story that every CIO understands.
Key Takeaways#
Value is generated only at the customer. Not during definition, implementation, or deployment. This is the foundation of the DevOps business case.
Time Value of Money applies to DevOps. Investing now is worth more than investing later. Every month you wait costs you compounding returns.
Start by improving lead time. The first DevOps investment should reduce the time from idea to customer value. Everything else follows from that.
Show the reinvestment cycle. Decision makers understand compound returns. Each DevOps improvement funds the next, creating accelerating value.
Everybody wins with DevOps. Faster value generation benefits the enterprise, the teams, and the customers. This is not a zero-sum game.