ThunderLabs CEO Chris McGowan chats with Stan Belikoff, an expert in delivery, transformation, and all things tech in an episode of ThunderCast. The conversation dived deep into the fusion of delivery and development teams, exploring why this integration is a game-changer for tech transformations.
Here’s a breakdown of the key insights from their discussion.
Listen to the full episode here.
Combining Delivery & Development Teams
Combining delivery and development teams brings significant advantages, primarily in terms of quality and speed. When these teams work in silos, there’s often a handover process that can lead to miscommunication and delays.
However, integrating them ensures a seamless flow from the problem statement to the delivery of the final product.
The removal of silos fosters a collaborative environment where everyone is focused on the outcomes.
This collaboration enhances the understanding of requirements and reduces the time spent on clarification, allowing the engineering team to focus on what they do best — developing robust software solutions.
Despite these benefits, this practice is not widely adopted because it can be challenging to implement.
Organisations often struggle with finding the right approach and mechanisms to achieve this integration. However, the rewards are worth the effort, leading to improved quality and accelerated delivery timelines.
Aligning Engineering & Architecture for Enhanced Outcomes
Aligning engineering and architecture teams is crucial for enhancing the overall quality and speed of tech transformations. This alignment ensures that there is a clear strategy and set of guidelines that the engineering team can follow, reducing ambiguity and improving efficiency.
When engineering and architecture teams work closely, they can quickly address gaps in architectural guidance, allowing for faster decision-making and execution.
This alignment is especially important in mature organisations where the engineering team can rely on well-defined architectural patterns and standards to deliver high-quality solutions consistently.
The key to success lies in the collaborative effort and clear communication between these teams, ensuring that the strategy and execution are aligned from the outset.
Embedding Security Throughout the Development Process
Incorporating security into every step of the development process is non-negotiable for modern tech projects. This approach, often referred to as DevSecOps, ensures that security is an integral part of the software development lifecycle, rather than an afterthought.
By embedding security practices into the development process, organisations can build robust and secure software solutions from the ground up.
This proactive approach helps in identifying and mitigating potential security vulnerabilities early in the development cycle, reducing the risk of security breaches and ensuring compliance with industry standards.
Security should be a shared responsibility across all teams involved in the development process, fostering a culture of security awareness and vigilance.
Conclusion
The integration of delivery and development teams, alignment of engineering and architecture, and embedding security throughout the development process are crucial for successful digital service transformations.
These practices foster collaboration, improve quality, and accelerate delivery timelines, ensuring that organisations can respond swiftly to changing market demands and deliver robust and secure solutions.
