Over the last decade, DevOps has gone from a “niche trend” to mainstream, becoming a key focus and shaping the world of software. According to Gartner, upwards of 50% of enterprises with a development function apply DevOps to part or all of their portfolio. Basic DevOps understanding is a critical skill for almost anyone in tech, and the demand for DevOps engineers has never been greater!
On Thursday, February 11th at 5 P.M. ET Girls in Tech NYC will be hosting a virtual class that will provide a hands-on introduction to DevOps. The course will be taught by Mollie Gaufin, Senior Manager of Engineering – DevOps at Solutionreach, and Alexmil Reyes, who has been working with Linux based platforms since 2014 in large publicly traded companies as well as the asset management industry. Get to know our instructors via their Q&As below and sign up for the event here!
Mollie Gaufin
Girls in Tech: Tell us a little bit about your career path. How did you get to where you are today?
Mollie Gaufin: I received my first degree at Brigham Young University for Public Health, but then realized I wasn’t actually interested in working in that field. After working my way up to a Business Analyst position, I got a taste for technology and went back to school for Information Systems and Technologies. This led to a position as a Quality Assurance Engineer, where I worked hard to learn and grow into a Director of DevOps and QA role.
GIT: What advice would you give to someone looking to switch industries and get into DevOps?
MG: Initiative is key. If you want to learn, there are many resources online to help you do so. Start by taking those lessons then work to grow your knowledge through application. Stay curious! Don’t be afraid to break things, that’s how you’ll learn. Continuously learn and improve.
GIT: What do you love most about DevOps?
MG: Automating all the things!
GIT: If you could go back to when you were just getting into the field, what advice would you give your younger self?
MG: I’ve always had a passion for computers and tinkering. I remember a time when I was in college and I was majoring in Public Health but decided to try out an intro IT class and it was full of men! It was really obvious that I was the only female, and I let that influence me to not pursue something I liked and was curious about. If I could go back, I would advise myself to stay the course and not let something like that dissuade me from continuing in that course of study.
GIT: What makes you most excited to be involved with the GIT community?
MG: Letting myself stop pursuing IT and Computer Science in college because I was the only female in my class is something I really regret. Being part of Girls in Tech and fostering diversity in the engineering and technology communities is a way to make sure that no one feels like they can or can’t do something because they identify as a certain gender.
Alexmil Reyes
GIT: How did you get into DevOps? What did you study in college?
Alexmil Reyes: During my time at Ziff Davis, I was always looking for the best way to do things at scale. I found that setting up our systems using DevOps tools and approach was the best way forward. During my early college years, I switched my major, starting with Medical Science and moving to Computer Science. Ultimately, in the end, I graduated with a BA in Music.
GIT: What advice would you give to someone looking to switch industries and get into DevOps?
AR: If you are currently working in IT/Engineering, check to see where you can apply DevOps tools, methods, and/or workflows meaningfully. If you don’t currently work in that field, I recommend starting building things locally on a personal computer. Use all resources available to you and learn how to use the documentations to deepen your understanding.
GIT: What do you love most about DevOps?
AR: I like how much information is openly available, the speed at which things progress, and how some of the issues you confront have unique solutions.
GIT: What makes you most excited to be involved with the GIT community?
AR: Having the opportunity to impact others positively through information sharing. It’s great to see an organization create a space for people to come together and enrich themselves.
GIT: Tell us a little bit about the course you plan to teach.
AR: This is hopefully the first of many courses that focuses on DevOps. The first course is very much an introduction to the practices and technologies fundamental to DevOps. From there, we hope to have a course on each of the practices in detail.
This training will give you:
Basic information about the Software Development Lifecycle and DevOps; what it is and what is is not.
Hands on experience with essential DevOps tools:
Microservices (Containers)
Continuous Integration & Continuous Delivery/Deployment
Infrastructure as Code
Monitoring and Logging
An opportunity to discuss how to influence adopting a DevOps culture at your organization.
