Introduction

DevOps is a set of practices and tools that blend software development and IT operations to automate and integrate processes, in order to enable faster, more reliable delivery of software by breaking down silos between teams. It focuses on collaboration, continuous feedback, and automation (CI/CD) across the complete software lifecycle, leading to improved efficiency.

However, supply and demand poses a challenge for companies looking to hire DevOps engineers, with the demand for qualified, experienced DevOps engineers outweighing the domestic supply within the US. Businesses often amplify this challenge by restricting their search to local tech talent; however, in recent years, the rise of remote, global work has begun to solve this issue.

What is DevOps Engineering?

A DevOps engineer supports the software development lifecycle by bridging the gap between development and operations teams to improve efficiency through automation and collaboration. This includes building and managing CI/CD pipelines, managing infrastructure, implementing monitoring systems, and ensuring the reliability of software releases.

What does a DevOps Engineer do?

DevOps engineers automate the software development lifecycle to reduce repetitive tasks and speed up delivery, including implementing continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines. They also manage and maintain servers and other IT infrastructure, as well as manage tools for version control, testing, and deployment.

DevOps Engineering Skills and Qualifications

DevOps Engineers will often hold a degree in computer science or similar, though this is not essential. When hiring a DevOps Engineer, it’s most important to look for strong experience in key tools and frameworks.

There are also many certifications and qualifications that a DevOps engineer may have. Popular certifications include:

• Microsoft Certified DevOps Engineer
• AWS Certified DevOps Engineer
• Microsoft Azure DevOps Engineer Expert (AZ-400)
• Google Cloud Professional Cloud DevOps Engineer
• Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA)
• HashiCorp Certified Terraform Associate
• Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA)
• DevOps Institute Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) Foundation/Practitioner
• Puppet Certified Professional (PCP)
• DevOps Institute: DevOps Leader (DOL) Certification
• Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD)

Beyond technical skills, soft skills are vital when choosing your DevOps Engineer. Problem-solving is crucial, aiding with troubleshooting and continuous learning. Communication is also essential when looking for any new team member, particularly in facilitating clear and open communication between technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Popular Languages for DevOps Engineering

There are many languages and frameworks commonly used for DevOps Engineering. Some of the most popular include:

• Python: The most popular choice for its simplicity and vast libraries, used for automation, CI/CD, and general scripting.
• Go/Golang: Excellent for building high-performance cloud tools, microservices, and infrastructure components.
• Bash/Shell: Used for automating tasks on Linux servers, managing files, and pipeline steps.
• PowerShell: Crucial for automation within Windows environments and Azure.
• JavaScript/TypeScript: Used for backend tools, web interfaces, and building applications that integrate into workflows.
• Ruby: Used in configuration management tools like Chef and Puppet.
• Java: Useful in enterprise environments for building scalable applications.
• SQL: Essential for interacting with databases, managing schemas, and querying data.

What are DevOps development frameworks?

Frameworks are collections of reusable code, templates and tools that provide a foundational structure for building applications effectively and efficiently. Some of the most popular DevOps development frameworks include:

• Kubernetes: A well-known open-source platform designed to make containerization easier.
• Ansible: Used to set up infrastructure and simplify the deployment process.
• Jenkins: An automation tool used in building, automating, and deploying code.
• Docker: Lets a development team package, manage, and run distributed apps.
• Prometheus: An open-source performance monitoring database.
• GitLab CI/CD: Lets you do continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) using GitLab.

What are some popular tools in DevOps?

There are many tools commonly used in DevOps, including:

• Git: Distributed version control for tracking code changes.
• Jira: Project tracking and agile management.
• CircleCI: Cloud-based CI/CD platform.
• Chef/Puppet: Configuration management tools.
• Selenium: Automates web browsers for testing.
• Azure DevOps: Microsoft’s suite of DevOps services.
• Sysdig: A comprehensive cloud-native visibility and security platform that provides observability, threat detection, and compliance tools.
• AWS CodeGuru: A developer tool powered by machine learning that helps improve code quality.
• Snyk: A developer-first security platform focused on identifying and fixing vulnerabilities in code.
• PagerDuty: A digital operations management platform, tailored for DevOps.
• incident.io: A structured incident management platform that helps engineers respond to outages.
• Datadog: A full-stack monitoring and security platform designed for cloud-scale applications.
• Dynatrace: A full-stack observability and application performance monitoring (APM) platform.

What are the benefits of DevOps Engineering?

DevOps Engineering brings benefits like faster software releases, improved quality, and stronger collaboration between teams by automating workflows (CI/CD) and breaking down silos. Other benefits include:

• Faster Delivery: CI/CD Automation shortens release cycles, enabling faster response to market changes.
• Higher Quality: Small, frequent updates with automated testing helps to catch bugs earlier.
• Efficiency & Automation: Automates repetitive tasks across testing, deployment and provisioning.
• Scalability: Automated processes help manage infrastructure and applications.
• Issue Resolution: Real-time monitoring and feedback loops lower Mean Time to Recovery (MTTR).

How much does it cost to hire a DevOps Engineer?

When hiring traditionally in the US for a local, mid-level DevOps engineers, the average annual compensation is $150,278, with a range of $50,000 to $250,000 according to Built In. However, even by just expanding to other parts of the United States, salaries can be reduced significantly.

On average, companies hiring DevOps engineers with HireDevelopers can expect to save between 50% and 80% on salaries and hiring costs, with exact salaries varying based on location and experience. The greatest savings can be found by hiring in Africa and Asia, while companies looking for aligned time zones and a closer cultural match can hire from our extensive pool of Latin American developers.

How to hire DevOps engineers

The first step to hiring a DevOps engineer is to decide on a hiring method. Traditional hiring methods include local job adverts, LinkedIn job posts and using your professional network to identify potential candidates.

However, these methods are often time consuming and can be expensive. The median time to hire a developer is around 41 days, with the slowest 10% taking up to 82 days and 38% of companies reporting project delays due to recruitment problems, according to the Linux Foundation’s 2024 State of Tech Talent Report.

Alternatively, many companies are now turning to services like HireDevelopers to cut costs and speed up the hiring process. With HireDevelopers, you can hire DevOps engineer from anywhere in the world, at any price point, in just 24 hours.

When putting together a job description or job interview for a DevOps engineer, prioritize technical skills, like familiarity with key frameworks and libraries.

You should also consider using coding challenges alongside a traditional interview during the hiring process – if you’re using a pre-vetted talent pool like HireDevelopers, this has already been done for you. Coding challenges allow you to assess problem-solving skills and coding expertise in a realistic, real-time environment.

If you need help putting together a DevOps job description or conducting a DevOps engineer job interview, you can check out our helpful and comprehensive guides below. Alternatively, to cut your time-to-hire by 90% and unlock savings of up to 80%, get in touch and book your free HireDevelopers consultation today.

Why hire DevOps engineers with HireDevelopers?

Hiring the right DevOps engineer for your team is a huge undertaking, and the process can be intimidating, especially for startups and small businesses.

At HireDevelopers, our pre-vetted, global tech talent marketplace streamlines your hiring journey and cuts time-to-hire by over 90% without compromising on quality or stretching your budget. Receive a custom shortlist of top DevOps engineers at any seniority level, at any price point and located anywhere in the world within just 24 hours of your consultation.

Plus, we’ll handle all payroll, legal compliance and HR completely for free, giving you more time to start building with your new DevOps engineer.

Get in touch today and start hiring top-notch DevOps engineers in just 24 hours.