The State of Salesforce DevOps 2023 Report Takeaways

With more and more organizations adopting the Salesforce platform, the demand for DevOps has increased significantly in recent years. In this post, we will discuss some key takeaways from the State of Salesforce DevOps Report.

Current landscape

First let’s take a look at the existing landscape with the currently in use processes/tools from most popular to least popular. According to the report the currently used items rank as shown below.

1. Metadata backup (56%)
2. Data backup (54%)
3. Automated unit testing and Source control (52%)
4. Change monitoring (49%)
5. CI/CD and Salesforce DX (44%)
6. Static code analysis (42%)
7. Sandbox seeding with data (41%)
8. UI Testing (40%)
9. Unlocked Packages (34%)

It is great to see backups and source control are in the lead with more than half of the participants who joined in to the survey are already using the source control and backup tools.

CI/CD, UI Testing and Sandbox seeding with data ranked on top 3 among participants that they are planning to adopt these tools in 2023. I think this shows an increased interest in automation tools among DevOps teams. One of the great challenges in introducing automation tools looks like lack of know-how in the teams involved.

Need of DevOps increases

The report also highlights that larger teams lead DevOps adoption. As team size grows, the need for communication and collaboration increases, making DevOps adoption a more natural fit for larger teams.

Another key finding from the report is the increase in release frequency compared to last year which is great because having a lower release frequency usually means that the more you wait to deliver, the longer end-users have to endure bugs and have limited access to new features. The increase in release frequency is a positive trend that can improve the end-user experience.

As organizations use Salesforce for more extended periods, the complexity of their orgs increases, leading to a higher demand for a DevOps process. Moreover, the introduction of new clouds and apps increases the need for deployment tools, making DevOps even more critical.

Training, training and more training

Finally, the report highlights the need for training in CI/CD and automation, collaboration and teamwork, and the business value of DevOps. The report suggests that there’s a clear correlation between regular training, effective collaboration, and cultural acceptance of DevOps.

One of the critical findings from the report is the importance of regular training in creating the essential traits of a DevOps culture. According to the report, teams that train once a month rate their team’s collaboration as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’. This highlights the importance of training to help teams build effective collaboration, which is a key component of DevOps.

Lack of experience is also another significant setback for DevOps adoption. Introducing new processes and tools can be great for a team, but if they lack experience in using them, it can hinder the overall process. Therefore, proper training is crucial for the successful adoption of DevOps.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the State of Salesforce DevOps Report highlights the importance of DevOps for organizations using the Salesforce platform. Regular training, effective collaboration, and cultural acceptance of DevOps are crucial for successful adoption. As organizations continue to use Salesforce for more extended periods, the need for a DevOps process increases, making it an essential part of the software development process.

At Idea Bulut Solutions we can help you train your team, have a good DevOps process and support your team with adoption.

Report link: The State of Salesforce DevOps 2023 from Gearset