All companies, no matter their industry, share a common challenge with their IT environment: growing complexity. To anticipate the pitfalls this complexity brings in terms of reliability, security and efficiency of IT operations, businesses are adopting new methodologies. Approaches such as agile and continuous integration / continuous deployment, initially popular in application development, have trickled over to IT Operations and have proven their merits. ModernOps is gaining widespread adoption among companies, transcending traditional boundaries and proving to be a transformative force.  

We spoke with Hendrik Devos, technology Lead at Kyndryl Belux and Marnix Gillis, Distinguished Engineer at Kyndryl about how ModernOps transforms IT organisations by fostering a collaborative culture that prioritises adaptability, innovation and continuous learning, ultimately driving sustainable business outcomes.  

What are the fundamentals of ModernOps? 

Hendrik Devos: “ModernOps is grounded in three fundamental principles. The first principle focuses on the concept of agile teams. These are teams composed of individuals from various disciplines, unified in managing a service. Importantly, this service is not merely relevant to IT, but crucial to the business itself. These teams are guided by clear priorities that are in direct alignment with the value they bring to the business. 

The second principle is about leveraging data and artificial intelligence. The aim here is to use these technological tools to gain insights and thereby improve operational results. This principle underscores the importance of data and AI in enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of operations in a ModernOps environment. 

Finally, the third principle advocates for the automation of everything that can be automated. The objective is to increase speed and efficiency, while also reducing the potential for human error. By automating processes wherever possible, ModernOps seeks to streamline operations and ensure a higher standard of accuracy and reliability in its processes.” 

How does ModernOps impact IT operations and business outcomes, according to you?  

Marnix Gillis: “ModernOps isn’t about tools. It is about cultivating the right mindset. ModernOps allows enterprises to navigate the challenges that come by combining the old (legacy) world with the new (cloud) world. IT Operations is traditionally a discipline where the industry is lagging in terms of agility and pro-activity and the adoption of public cloud has been a game-changer in this area. When you apply agile principles to IT operations, you can expect IT operations that are a foundation for digital innovation, rapidly and reliably. ModernOps is a set of techniques, tools and technologies that brings that agility to IT Operations. But it's not only about agile practices. For Kyndryl, ModernOps encompasses a series of practices such as FinOps (cost-conscious culture that maximises return of IT investments), DevSecOps (join IT development and IT operations to accelerate time-to-market, while ensuring security and quality), Sustainability Operations (incorporating sustainability in all IT decisions), Compliance and Security Operations (shift-left continuous security, compliance and risk management) and Modern Multi-sourcing (the convergence of service management and operations management)”.  

“ModernOps leverages a combination of people, processes and technology to provide enterprises with faster innovation, quicker delivery into the hands of doers, but also agile, iterative and constant delivery of value and ultimately better business outcomes,” adds Hendrik Devos.  

Devos continues: “Take for example FinOps, it is facilitated by a tool. However, this tool won’t make any valuable suggestions to reduce costs or optimise sustainability, unless you have a solid process in place to collect data that you can feed into the tool. Cultural change is needed for your operations workforce because they fundamentally need to change the siloed way they approach operations.”

How has Kyndryl integrated the principles of ModernOps into its own service delivery for IT operations?  

Marnix Gillis: “Kyndryl has built an open engagement platform that integrates the different technologies that come into play when adopting ModernOps. This platform serves as the interface that provides IT professionals with a holistic view of the health of their IT environment. Kyndryl delivery teams use the platform to design, build, manage and modernise the hybrid multi-cloud IT environments of their customers. It is important to know that, with Kyndryl Bridge, IT organisations can integrate their technology of choice into the ModernOps ecosystem regardless of whether it’s on-prem, in the cloud or both. Kyndryl Bridge acts as a unifying force, breaking down silos between diverse technologies and ensuring they work harmoniously to support the organisation's objectives.” 

“In conclusion, the evolution towards ModernOps signifies more than a tool-centric transition; it requires a fundamental shift in IT Operations mindset. Grounded in principles of agility, data-driven decision-making, and extensive automation, ModernOps offers distinct advantages. It propels digital agility, ensuring faster innovation, quicker and more reliable service delivery, and iterative value generation. As highlighted by Hendrik Devos, its multifaceted approach results in improved operational outcomes, translating to reliable and secure business services with increased performance and higher customer satisfaction”