VIDEO | nvisia VP: A Team's Curiosity Should Guide its Learning Path

(US and Canada) Mark Panthofer, Vice President at nvisia, speaks with Maribeth Achterberg, VP of Solution Delivery at Molson Coors Beverage Company, in a video interview about the advantages of hub-and-spoke architecture for efficient data management in the cloud, embracing DevOps principles, and curiosity-driven learning for cloud success.

He begins by discussing the prominence of microservices as an architectural pattern that many organizations have heard about. However, he points out that the strict definition of microservices is less prevalent in most organizations.

Panthofer then shifts the focus to cloud architecture and highlights the presence of a lot of organizations in the cloud. He emphasizes the importance of establishing a well-designed cloud architecture and poses questions about when organizations established their cloud presence and whether it aligns with current standards.

One prevalent architectural pattern Panthofer mentions is the hub-and-spoke architecture, particularly in terms of data management and flow. He explains that organizations often utilize a centralized hub to manage data coming in and out of the cloud. This architecture allows for effective networking and data management within the cluster or cloud environment.

The concept of ‘landing zones’ within the hub-and-spoke architecture was discussed as a key component. Each team is assigned its own landing zone, which provides them with autonomy, and a dedicated cloud presence. These landing zones function as spokes within the hub and spoke architecture, ensuring centralized control and management while enabling teams to innovate and specify their environment.

Panthofer stresses the importance of getting the cloud architecture right, particularly from a data perspective. He highlights the need to consider data flow in and out of the cloud and emphasizes the management and governance of data within the architecture. He also mentions the adoption of open-standard platforms, specifically Kubernetes, as a cost-saving measure for organizations in the long run, although expertise is required for successful implementation.

When discussing how organizations running in a traditional on-prem environment can transition to a microservices environment, Panthofer advised starting with the cloud aspect. Rather than aiming for a perfect production environment right away, he recommended focusing on getting a containerized application running in a development cluster. This approach allows organizations to establish flow and familiarize themselves with the cloud-native environment gradually.

Panthofer stresses the importance of following DevOps principles such as flow, feedback, and continuous improvement throughout the transition. He suggests building the team’s capabilities incrementally and learning through hands-on experience. Additionally, he recommends using implementation tools like Terraform to support development and platform engineering teams.

In conclusion, Panthofer encourages organizations to approach cloud adoption with incremental training, allowing the team's curiosity to guide their learning path.

CDO Magazine thanks Mark Panthofer for sharing his insights and data success stories with our global community.

See more from Mark Panthofer

I’m Focused on Taking Organizations from Cloud-Enabled to Cloud Native DevOps