In today’s fast-paced digital world, the divide between IT Operations and DevOps teams can slow down business growth, impact service delivery, and create unnecessary bottlenecks. While DevOps focuses on agility, automation, and continuous delivery, IT Operations is responsible for stability, compliance, and system reliability. When these two teams collaborate effectively, businesses achieve faster deployments, reduced downtime, and improved customer satisfaction.
Also Read: How to Improve IT Service Desk Efficiency with AI & Automation
So, how can IT Operations and DevOps teams work better together? Let’s explore some practical strategies to bridge the gap and drive efficiency.
Foster a Culture of Collaboration
One of the biggest challenges between IT Operations and DevOps teams is a cultural disconnect. DevOps engineers prioritize speed and innovation, while IT Operations focuses on risk management and long-term stability. Encouraging open communication, cross-team training, and shared goals can help eliminate friction.
Automate for Efficiency and Speed
Automation is a game-changer for both teams. By leveraging tools like Infrastructure as Code (IaC), CI/CD pipelines, and AIOps, businesses can reduce manual effort, prevent errors, and speed up deployments while maintaining security and compliance.
Key Tools:
- Terraform & Ansible – Automate infrastructure management
- Jenkins & GitLab CI – Streamline CI/CD pipelines
- Splunk & Datadog – Enhance observability and monitoring
Align on Shared Metrics and KPIs
Instead of working in silos, IT Operations and DevOps teams should track common KPIs to measure success together. Key metrics include:
- Mean Time to Resolution (MTTR) – How quickly are issues resolved?
- Deployment Frequency – How often are new releases deployed?
- Change Failure Rate – How many changes cause system failures?
By focusing on these shared performance indicators, both teams can align their objectives and work toward a common goal.
Implement a Unified Incident Management Process
When incidents occur, IT Operations and DevOps need to respond quickly and efficiently. A unified incident management framework ensures smooth collaboration.
- Use chat-based incident response tools like Slack or Microsoft Teams for real-time updates
- Establish clear escalation paths so issues are resolved without confusion
- Conduct post-mortems to analyze incidents and improve processes
Invest in DevSecOps for Security and Compliance
Security should never be an afterthought. DevOps teams must integrate security best practices into the software development lifecycle, while IT Operations ensures compliance with industry regulations.
DevSecOps practices include:
- Automating security testing in CI/CD pipelines
- Implementing role-based access control (RBAC)
- Regularly auditing infrastructure and application security
By making security a shared responsibility, organizations can mitigate risks without slowing down innovation.
