DevOps Roadmap Template

About the DevOps Roadmap Template

DevOps roadmaps are a way to implement a process that relies on continuous integration and deployment, involving development and operational teams. It helps teams produce a higher level of output, with fewer variations between production cycles and an improved cross-functional view of the end-to-end product cycle.

Instead of following the traditional “handoff” siloed approach, the DevOps methodology emphasizes engineering and IT teams working together and coordinating efforts throughout an entire software release cycle.

DevOps teams can build more transparent, collaborative, and efficient product development processes by fostering a set of principles (growth mindset, rewarding innovation, cooperation, experimentation, learning, and user empathy) rather than focusing on organizational structure.

What is a DevOps roadmap?

DevOps roadmaps enable you to streamline team rituals and tools to better manage resources each quarter. Team leads or managers can use the roadmap to create new ways of keeping overheads low and reduce busywork. Ideally, your team stays challenged and motivated to find opportunities for innovation.

DevOps also makes it easier for engineers and operational folks to sync. The team is responsible for bridging the gap and coordinating what engineering and operations develop and release to customers.

By collaborating throughout the software development process, developers can iterate code continuously based on feedback from the operations team. Like Agile methodology, DevOps processes help teams have fewer setbacks or surprises through more testing and coordination opportunities built into the process.

This DevOps roadmap features customizable visualizations representing:

• A circular workflow that defines both teams’ delivery pipeline and the continuous feedback loop between your company and your customers

• A quarterly DevOps roadmap outlining near-term priorities, populated with products and projects in each swimlane

• A moveable “today” placeholder to help your team track quarterly progression

Instead of separating developers and IT operations into discrete information silos, building a DevOps team lets organizations plan for disaster recovery. Creating a shared DevOps roadmap also helps build scalable, portable, and secure products.

When to use DevOps roadmaps

A well-defined DevOps roadmap helps teams work together and offers learning opportunities when projects and products succeed or hit obstacles.

A DevOps roadmap can also help teams:

• Understand specific details of the overall process to align development and operations on key dates and initiatives to collaborate better.

• Stay aligned on priorities and dependencies to manage their time and anticipate when teams deliver items needing attention.

• Continuously improve products by regularly communicating and sharing information and frequently delivering incremental improvements and functionality to users.

As a visual reference, the DevOps roadmap also helps teams keep midterm and near-term priorities in mind and adapt to shifting priorities.

To prioritize each item on your roadmap, use the CAMS framework:

• Culture: Activities that improve communication and mutual understanding of one another’s goals and responsibilities

• Automation: Activities that accelerate continuous delivery and integration while saving time, money, and effort across teams, processes, and tools

• Measurement: Activities that help measure whether progress is happening and going in the right direction

• Sharing: Activities that help transparency and openness, tighten feedback loops, and drive continuous improvement

The ultimate goal is to share responsibility and get teams on the same page to help the organization’s progress.

How to create a roadmap for DevOps

Making your own DevOps roadmap is easy. Miro’s is the perfect tool to create roadmaps and share them. Get started by selecting the DevOps roadmap template, then take the following steps to make one of your own.

1. Clearly define your roadmap’s objectives Before adding or editing any roadmap content, determine why your teams need it. Some examples include: “Improve coordination between engineering and operations teams,” or “Create a single source of truth for DevOps work.”

2. Set specific short-term goals or plans The default template covers a year across Q1 to Q4. However, it’s ideal for planning three months when forward-thinking. Any longer, your DevOps roadmap potentially could become messy and unfocused.

3. Use visual cues to make the roadmap easier to understand By default, this template labels items as “High Priority,” “Medium Priority,” and “Low Priority.” You can also color-code each item according to CAMS values (Culture, Automation, Measurement, Sharing).

4. Share the roadmap with your engineering and operations team Click “Invite Members” to give access to everyone who needs to contribute to your DevOps roadmap. You can also invite team members, clients, or stakeholders via Slack or email.

5. Review and edit your DevOps workflow as needed Maybe you need to follow a slightly different DevOps workflow?

6. Ask your team to add products and projects to the roadmap Each roadmap object is color-coded according to its aligned principle in CAMS. You can also add a tag to flag its priority status, from high to low.

7. Keep your roadmap updated as needed Set up regular review sessions to adjust your DevOps workflow or roadmap priorities as plans change. You can also encourage colleagues to check the DevOps roadmap on their own to stay updated with changes or priorities.

If you use Jira, you can easily import Jira cards to your DevOps roadmap template to visually track issues.