Software integration, IT management and seamless business operations can all be achieved through DevOps by creating an environment where you can rapidly and reliably build, test, and publish software. Agile software development practices and IT infrastructure automation tools are an integral part of DevOps.
DNA, a Finnish telecom company, has benefited tremendously from adopting DevOps practices in its multi-vendor environment with Eficode’s strong support. “Without DevOps practices, building the same capabilities would have had operational and development costs of several thousand euros per hour,” says DNA Change and Release Manager Mikael Kuisma. He estimates that “annual savings range from millions to tens of millions, when also accounting for the faster launching of products and the ability to respond more rapidly to changing market conditions.”
Eficode collaborated with DNA for three years, providing maintenance, support, and development of DevOps tools and related practices. Collaboration started from DNA’s need for a versatile developer partner when the previous partner could not scale their offering—quantitatively and qualitatively—to match DNA’s needs.
“We wanted continuous integration (CI) and development (CD), which means a functional publishing pipeline and automation for developing code. An agile operational culture has been built around this pipeline, enabling tens of teams to function actively, without problems or system violations. As a result, our IT development has achieved both predictability and a high rate of change,” Kuisma explains.
With Eficode’s support, the DNA integration system has jumped from being sluggish and difficult to update to a more flexible setup where partners can be exchanged as needed. Also, the system is never down as the update periods are short and only affect a limited number of functions at a time.
DNA has a number of developer partners. Eficode has taken on the role of leading some of these other actors. Eficode is the leading Nordic player in the field and it seeks out the best DevOps practices globally so it can share them with its customers.
“Eficode deals with so many others that they provide us with lots of information about best practices. Their role has included the introduction of tools and practices that enable agile work — our DevOps policy is purely Eficode’s handiwork,” Kuisma continues.
Eficode has also helped other DNA developers to shape their work to fit DevOps practices.
“For example, they exchanged ideas with our other partner regarding the introduction of CI, the development of the publishing pipeline and monitoring the implementation with the tools we had chosen. Now that team is an example of how well things can be done for their organization. However, what they didn’t mention was that in fact it was Eficode working with them and directed their development and practices,” Kuisma recalls.
Eficode ROOT is a great solution for businesses who want to focus on developing their business with DevOps, the benefits of which are well known. At the same time, this assures that you are a pioneer in the field who is able to quickly and in an agile manner develop new services to meet your customer’s needs.
Kuisma estimates that without Eficode, their IT architecture would be more fragmented. Their teams would make individual solutions that would result in compatibility issues over time. It would lead to higher costs as each team would have to maintain their own services and tools.
DevOps practices enable developers and testers to focus on the most relevant work using a clear and logical approach. They are constantly getting feedback on their own work through the test, build and deploy automation, and thus are able to direct their work more productively. Automation enhances efficiency and manages the standardised intermediate steps, which makes it easier to monitor and improve the quality of a software project.
In terms of the practicalities of the collaboration, Eficode provides flexible resourcing for DNA through a 9-person pool that is available to meet the client’s different needs. “For us, this collaboration is ideal. We could not hope for a better way of doing this,” Kuisma sums up.
DNA Plc is a Finnish telecommunications group providing high-quality voice, data and TV services for communication, entertainment and working. DNA is Finland's largest cable operator and the leading pay TV provider in both cable and terrestrial networks. For DNA, the key area for growth in corporate business is the new way of working, independent of time and place, facilitated by smart terminal devices, diverse communications services and rapid connections. In 2017, DNA recorded net sales of EUR 886 million and an operating profit of EUR 124 million. DNA has more than 3.9 million subscriptions in its fixed and mobile communications networks. The Group also includes DNA Store, Finland's largest retail chain selling mobile phones. DNA shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd.
For further information, visit www.dna.fi or follow @DNA_fi on Twitter and Facebook