12/04/24 | EverOps
In this executive Q&A, we are excited to sit down with Mike Connors, the head of DevOps delivery at EverOps. With over two decades of experience in the tech industry, Mike brings a wealth of knowledge and a unique perspective to the table. From his early days in telecommunications to his current role leading DevOps accounts, Mike has been at the forefront of technological innovation and problem-solving.
In this interview, Mike shares his journey in tech, discusses the challenges faced by modern businesses in the DevOps space, and offers valuable insights into EverOps’ approach to solving these challenges. He provides a glimpse into the company’s unique pod delivery model and explains why understanding the ‘why’ behind every problem is crucial for success.
Read on to discover how EverOps is shaping the future of DevOps and tackling modern business challenges through innovation.
I’m Mike Connors, and I currently serve as the head of DevOps delivery at EverOps. I’ve been with the company for about two years now, leading all of our DevOps accounts from a delivery perspective.
My journey in tech began about 24 years ago in the telecommunications industry. I started working on the back end of IT systems, focusing on network provisioning and infrastructure provisioning. This was before DevOps was even a term in the industry.
As for my personal life, I’m a father of four—three 13-year-olds and a 2-and-a-half-year-old. Most of my free time revolves around my family, from attending extracurricular activities and marching band performances to playing sports and, of course, keeping the house from burning down!
I was born in Sarasota, Florida, but my career has taken me all over the United States and internationally, across North and South America. Currently, I’ve settled in the mountains of Northern Georgia, where I work remotely from a small town.
My career path has been an interesting journey. After starting in telecommunications, I moved into an international consulting role, still within the telecom sector. I traveled from country to country, working on billing, rating, and mediation platforms for various telecommunication companies. This experience really ignited my passion for consulting.
From there, I transitioned to working with larger consultancies, which allowed me to expand my focus into areas like platform engineering, DevOps practices, and leading automation and observability initiatives. This gradual evolution allowed me to build a diverse skill set that spans multiple aspects of IT infrastructure and development processes.
Over the past six to eight years, I’ve primarily focused on two main areas: infrastructure provisioning and developer experience. These are critical challenges that I see many organizations face today.
In terms of infrastructure provisioning, I’ve been working on applying application and pipelining methodologies to the infrastructure side of operations. This approach helps organizations streamline their infrastructure management and make it more responsive to the needs of modern software development.
When it comes to developer experience, the focus is on making developers as efficient as possible within their overall Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC). This involves optimizing workflows, implementing the right tools, and creating an environment that allows developers to focus on writing code rather than getting bogged down by process inefficiencies.
What I love most about technology is its potential to make our lives easier. But, I’ve noticed a recurring issue in many organizations as they often try to solve problems by focusing on tools first rather than understanding the holistic workflow they’re trying to automate or the toil they’re trying to remove.
In my view, technology is only half of the equation. The other half is the human aspect, like understanding the ‘why’ behind the things we do and the direction we’re taking to solve challenges. It’s this combination of technology and human understanding that really drives meaningful solutions.
One of the biggest challenges we encounter is defining a roadmap that meets clients where they currently are while also guiding them toward their desired outcomes. This generally requires a holistic understanding of their current environment and the ability to build solutions that address their specific business challenges.
These challenges can vary widely, from budget constraints and resource limitations to gaps in skill sets or the need for guidance on best practices for specific solutions. Our job is to take all these inputs and craft a tailored approach that solves their most pressing business challenges.
The first and most crucial step in our approach is understanding the ‘why’ behind the reason we’re working with a client. Once we understand the problem they’re trying to solve, the solution often falls into place naturally, guided by our experience.
This approach allows us to look beyond surface-level issues and address the root causes of problems. It also ensures that the solutions we implement are aligned with the client’s broader business goals and strategies.
At EverOps, we use what we call a ‘pod delivery model.’ This means we deploy a team of people to work with our clients rather than just individual consultants. The pods are a blend of mid-level to senior-level engineers, along with pod leaders or team leaders who drive architectural and client decisions alongside their engineers.
This approach provides a holistic service rather than just individual skill sets. It’s not something that many consultancies offer today, and it’s one of the key factors that sets us apart from our competition.
Ultimately, the pod model allows us to bring a diverse range of skills and perspectives to each project. It ensures that we have the right mix of technical expertise and leadership to guide the project effectively. I think it also provides our clients with a more comprehensive and integrated solution to their biggest challenges.
What I enjoy most about my work is the diversity of challenges we encounter. Every client has a unique set of problems, regardless of their tech stack, processes, or culture. While there might be some common themes or technologies across different projects, we never face exactly the same problem twice. This constant variety means we’re always growing and trying something new, which keeps the work exciting and engaging.
Looking ahead, I’m most excited about working with my team. They’re a collection of incredibly talented individuals with a broad spectrum of experiences and personality types. Being able to work in a very diverse and complex environment with them is very advantageous, and I look forward to doing that every day.
Our team’s diversity isn’t just about different skill sets. It’s also about different perspectives and approaches to problem-solving. This diversity allows us to tackle challenges from multiple angles and come up with innovative solutions that a more homogeneous team might miss.
Recently, we worked with a client who needed to migrate from their current infrastructure to a target architecture. This project was particularly challenging because it required multiple layers of assistance simultaneously.
On the one hand, we needed to provide a layer of advocacy from an engineering perspective. This involved helping the client’s team understand and buy into the new target architecture. At the same time, we had to provide a layer of engineering excellence to actually perform the migrations to the target architecture.
Running these two aspects in parallel while leading the team was a significant challenge. It required careful coordination and a deep understanding of both the technical aspects of the migration and the human factors involved in managing change in an organization.
The first hurdle was finding the right people to fit into these roles. We needed team members who could interface effectively with everyone on the client side while also possessing the technical experience required for the project. It took a few weeks of careful consideration and planning to find the right people, develop the right approach, and chart the right path forward.
But the results were well worth the effort. Within just a few months, we achieved outcomes that were three to four times what the client initially expected. It was incredibly rewarding to see how our carefully crafted approach paid off in such a significant way.
This project further exemplifies our approach at EverOps. We don’t just focus on the technical aspects of a problem; we also consider the human elements, the organizational challenges, and the long-term goals of our clients. By taking a more holistic approach, we’re able to deliver results that often exceed our clients’ expectations.
Customers should choose EverOps because we blend technical expertise with a deep understanding of the human elements behind every business challenge. Our team prioritizes continuous learning, staying ahead of industry trends through conferences, workshops, and internal knowledge-sharing sessions. Our commitment to growth allows us to bring the most innovative, cutting-edge solutions to the table.
What truly sets us apart is our collaborative pod delivery model. Rather than assigning a single specialist, we deploy a well-rounded team that works closely with the client. This approach allows us to draw on a variety of perspectives and experience levels, making sure that the solutions we provide are comprehensive and tailored specifically to the client’s needs.
For both myself and EverOps, the future is all about continued growth and tackling new challenges. Each client brings unique problems to solve, and I’m excited to keep pushing the boundaries of what we can do as a team. Whether it’s finding innovative ways to improve developer efficiency or helping clients navigate complex infrastructure migrations, the work is never the same, and that’s what keeps me engaged. I look forward to being an integral part of our team as we refine our approach and continue delivering exceptional results for our clients.
As we wrap up this Q&A, it’s clear that the world of DevOps is complex, challenging, and constantly evolving. Yet, with the right blend of technical expertise and a strong understanding of both business and human factors, these challenges can become opportunities for innovation and growth.
Mike Connors and his team at EverOps exemplify this approach, guiding businesses through the complexities of IT infrastructure and development with their unique pod delivery model. Their commitment to understanding the ‘why’ behind every problem and their focus on continuous improvement set them apart.
As businesses continue to grapple with digital transformation and the need for more agile, efficient IT operations, the insights and approaches shared by Mike in this interview will undoubtedly prove valuable. Whether you’re just starting your DevOps journey or looking to take your practices to the next level, the lessons learned from EverOps’ experiences offer a roadmap for success in this dynamic field.