12 Pros and Cons of Being a DevOps Engineer

The recruitment demand for DevOps engineers has increased rapidly in the last few years. Pursuing this career, you will face a series of challenges.

However, you will work in a dynamic environment and receive an attractive salary compared to the average. There are many things you need to learn about this job.

Let’s get all the information if you aim to develop a career as a DevOps engineer.

What is DevOps?

DevOps is bringing together the development and operations phases to create reliable software quickly. DevOps will help optimize the development, delivery, and software development cycle.

For a long time, many companies have seen DevOps as a work method and culture. However, with proven efficiency, the recruitment demand for DevOps engineers has appeared and is increasing in large corporations.

People who do this job need to know software development, debugging, and system operation. They will have to work with many components in the cloud environment to keep high-quality products and the system running smoothly.

Dev-Ops

DevOps Engineer Career

Companies have paid more attention to developing DevOps teams and achieved many results. According to the State of DevOps report, DevOps implementations perform 30 times more effectively than companies in the same industry.

Because of this positive impact, the demand for DevOps engineer positions is higher than ever. However, before pursuing this promising career, you should consider all the advantages and disadvantages you may face.

DevOps is one of the jobs with the most robust career prospects today. In addition, this career also gives employees a lot of attractive benefits.

1. Specialized Tasks

DevOps is a rather specific job requiring programming, administration, operation, and development knowledge. Pursuing this career will allow you to apply your knowledge and skills to your favorites.

In some cases, DevOps engineers have to get the proper certification. But, as long as you understand programming and system administration well, you can take on many different roles in the software development cycle.

2. Work Environment

In general, DevOps engineers will work in the office. The traditional working environment helps engineers have better concentration and opportunities to communicate, build relationships and practice professional skills.

Some companies allow DevOps engineers to work remotely. You can choose the most suitable job position depending on your working habits.

3. Attractive Salary

A DevOps engineer’s average salary is much higher than the intermediate level in the information technology field.

In the UK, a DevOps engineer receives salaries ranging from £55k to £130k depending on experience and position. Meanwhile, the senior engineer with no experience will receive a salary of $73,010 in the United States.

An engineer with over 20 years of experience in the field will earn $127,081/year, excluding bonuses and commissions. In addition, DevOps engineers who specialize in a particular sub-area can receive more attractive salaries. They can also increase their income by taking on some extra work related to remote work.

4. Work Location

The demand for DevOps engineer positions is quite diverse. You can work in many different locations.

The salary for this job varies slightly by location. In the United States, Tennessee is the state with the highest average salary for DevOps engineers when a year, engineers can get $129,927.

The second and third on the list are Hawaii and Massachusetts. The average annual salary of a DevOps engineer when working in these two cities is $125,600 and $123,540, respectively.

5. Interesting Job

DevOps is different from jobs in the IT field. As a DevOps engineer, you don’t just write code like a programmer or statistician and analyze data like a manager.

Instead, you can use the accumulated knowledge and creativity to optimize the software development process. You will have to work on many different projects and roles. Your work will be challenging but equally fascinating.

6. Accumulate Skills

Working as a DevOps, you have both system operation skills and the ability to design and produce software. These skills apply to many fields and projects.

Only some people with software or systems knowledge can succeed as DevOps engineers. The reason lies in the challenges that anyone has to face below.

7. Stress

An excellent DevOps engineer must understand the optimal software release and production steps. They have to improve and manage every phase of the production cycle.

As such, a DevOps engineer is focused on something other than completing a specific job. They must grasp and manage people’s affairs.

These requirements make the work of DevOps quite stressful.

8. Long Working Hours

The heavy workload causes DevOps engineers to work overtime frequently. Especially when it comes to completing projects, engineers need to accept working nights or weekends.

The tasks that a DevOps engineer does have a significant impact on the software development cycle. And those who do this job will be held accountable if the project doesn’t work as expected.

10. Competition

DevOps engineering is a lucrative job, attracting people who love and have skills in software development.

However, you will likely have to compete with many other talented candidates around the world for the same vacancy. And to impress employers, you’ll need to hone your knowledge and experience and get relevant qualifications.

11. Education Requirements

Most employers require candidates to have at least a bachelor’s degree in IT, network administration, and related fields. To get an extra edge in interviews, you should get a master’s or doctoral degree in this field. In addition, attending certification training courses will also help a lot in your career.

12. Obvious Health Risks

DevOps engineers often have to work long hours in a single position. They are very susceptible to bone-related diseases or poor mental health.

Conclusion

DevOps engineers can come with many new and exciting challenges. But besides the outstanding advantages, it also gives you many difficulties and pressure.

The pros and cons list above are the most basic information. You can refer to the issues mentioned in the article to make the right decision. Hopefully, you are always satisfied with your choice.

Thanks for reading!