Factors Affecting Cloud Infra-Service Development Lead Times: A Case Study at ING

摘要

The development of Cloud Infra-Services has shifted over the past decade in the direction of a software code development process, also known as infrastructure as code (IaC). Contemporary continuous delivery settings in industry require fast feedback. As a consequence, companies need insight in time spent, especially in the development of such services. We examine a series of 28 Cloud Infra-Services within ING, and explore which factors affect their overall time to market and development time. An initial perception among several stakeholders in the Cloud Infra-Service development process, that Cloud Infra-Services within ING take longer than those in peer companies, is not confirmed by our benchmark. Development team members identified the time to internal market of services to be affected negatively by the portal where consumers can order a service and the Orchestration Workflows and by team dynamics. This perception is supported by additional metrics. We propose that promising ways to reduce lead time include reducing the complexity of the ING environment, by treating Cloud Infra-Services like regular software deliveries and by reducing the dependencies between teams in terms of tooling and collaboration.