LISA16 - Implementing DevOps in a Regulated Traditionally Waterfall Environment

LISA16 - Implementing DevOps in a Regulated Traditionally Waterfall Environment

Jason Victor and Peter Lega, Merck and Co., Inc.

DevOps is adopted in so many places, and its benefits are well documented, but despite this, it is not getting the same traction in regulated environments. Is it truly impossible to implement DevOps at a regulated company when someone else makes the rules? Or is it possible to both challenge the status quo and still adhere to essential compliance and risk requirements.

We will provide why regulated companies like Merck—a 125 year-old pharmaceutical company—are challenged to change course. We will explain the complexities of some of these regulations to get a better understanding of the challenge, and how the "path of most resistance" becomes the default release management strategy trap.

Join us midway on our multi-year journey to augment our traditional, waterfall methodology with DevOps/Agile culture and methodology. We will talk about our approach, our tool chain, and how we changed peoples’ minds from "that will never work" to "that's the new way to work."

We are hoping that with this talk, you will walk away from us with a set of ideas on how to implement and overcome your own companies’ obstacles to change.