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DevSecOps and Virtual Training Platforms Top 2022 Software Agendas

By James Azar, SVP and CTO, Orasi

In 2022, the reasons why we've been thrust into an age of remote work, virtual training and hybrid cloud environments will be buried on page-two. Above the page-one fold will remain a shortlist of required factors that'll ensure software development success:

(1) the solidification of DevSecOps as an irrefutable driver of business value; and 

(2) the need for organizations to effectively train, worldwide, on applications.

DevSecOps accelerates software application delivery, adoption through automation

There has been a long-awaited increase in focus on AppSec as part of DevOps (i.e. the rise of DevSecOps). Orasi customers, partners and prospects talk constantly about the need for security data integration and centralized dashboarding to provide better visibility for enterprise application security management. 

With globally distributed teams, automation remains the best bet in terms of streamlining DevSecOps and collaboration to ensure distributed resources are communicating/working effectively. Teams will step up the breaking down of siloed AppDev functions and adopt a more complete end-to-end pipeline automation approach that puts deserved emphasis on application security, testing, data and monitoring -- all vital elements to achieving peak performance of multiple interrelated systems and ensuring throughput.

Along with automation comes the continued move to hybrid cloud environments. In early 2021, Deloitte reported that growing cloud spend in this area will continue with a vengeance through 2025, remaining at or above 2019 levels of more than 30 percent. DevSecOps is proving a catalyst for successful application operations, development and security as customers increase that spend and make the migration. 

In addition to having a direct impact on time to market, DevSecOps' role in an organization cloud's strategy ensures software tangibles (e.g. agility, quality and ongoing product innovation), as well as some of the "softer" IT factors pivotal to today's work environment (e.g. engineering culture, collaboration and performance). In 2022, you'll find this mindset shift led from multiple levels throughout a development shop and not just from the top down.

Train anyone, anywhere, anytime hands-on labs to learn and use apps are a must-have

Running parallel to an organization's goals of improving digital transformation, software development and team performance are the virtual training expectations of employees, customers, partners, users and everyone in between. With geographically dispersed environments (both cloud and the workforce), hybrid delivery to one's desktop of hands-on learning platforms that deliver training to anyone, anywhere, anytime is the expected baseline. Given the rapid pace of evolving software applications, this rings true for all staff levels, punching in and out at any hour, from any place in the world, regardless of experience level. People and organizations must keep up with new apps, equipment and skills to stay marketable, as well as meet company (and client) expectations.

Gone are the crash course days of emailing a slide deck and white paper then following it up with a 60 minute video call and expecting someone to be an overnight expert on a new software application. The demand for cloud-based virtual training platforms with an easy-to-navigate user interface, real-time web conferencing, digital classroom customization, picture-in-picture views, over-the-shoulder collaboration, white-label branding and limitless scalability features -- all at one's fingertips through an internet browser -- is at an all-time high. The expectation for these types of virtual training platforms throughout the software industry comes from instructors and students alike. The anytime access model to dig into learning materials in multiple forms on one's own schedule fits perfectly with the gig economy evolution that's here to stay.

For software application training, perhaps the most important expansion for cloud-based virtual learning labs is the transformation of the training platform itself. We'll see the move from Learning Management Systems increase rapidly to Learning Experience Platforms (LXP) that speed delivery, learning, adoption and implementation. Ease of integration with multiple enterprise software systems will be a growing factor of platform selection. Metrics tracking (operational, consumption, impact) will dictate decisions on where to continue investment. Data of that caliber can have a technology and human resource impact that brings performance and productivity back to the importance foreground by validating inclusivity and eliminating culture/geolocation as measurement factors.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James oversees service delivery, technology and strategic planning for Orasi. A 35-year software veteran, he previously served as VP of the Caliber division at Starbase. Prior to he co-founded Technology Builders where he built the original CaliberRM requirements management tool and led the engineering and product development teams through commercial application delivery. Before that James worked for Computer Associates. He earned a BS in Computer Science from the University of Alabama and furthered studies at Stanford University, Carnegie Mellon and Auburn University. James is a published resource and speaker on global technology strategies.