It’s 2021, and DevOps is at the center of application development around the world. It ranks first on the list of development methodologies for 2021; It's no wonder that 35.9% of organizations in the industry prefer it, according to Gitlab’s 2021 survey.

In today's shifting job market, DevOps engineers and professionals are the most in-demand. The role of a DevOps engineer spans multiple disciplines and competencies.

Whatever the case, a stellar resume is crucial to landing a job in DevOps. So, if you’re seeking a job in DevOps, the information in this article will guide you in writing a DevOps resume and will let you know what DevOps skills to have.

How To Write A Strong DevOps Resume

Modern businesses need a DevOps methodology to survive and succeed long-term. DevOps encompasses the lifecycle of the development process. It allows you to work with a variety of technologies, tools, and languages. As a result, DevOps career paths are an attractive proposition to both technical and non-technical people alike.

In the tech job market, many technical professionals and developers are rapidly switching careers to become DevOps engineers. Your job as a DevOps engineer will require you to have a complete picture of the entire process and application lifecycle and deal with issues accordingly.

According to the DevOps Institute, 10% of hiring managers find the experience of hiring DevOps specialists “difficult” and 24% find it “extremely difficult”. While many software engineers have experience, others are just starting on their DevOps careers and have no idea what they need and how to get a job in DevOps.

Before you get into that, though, what does a career in DevOps entail, what responsibilities will you handle? Some of those responsibilities include:

• Full stack development
• Keeping the production infrastructure healthy
• Facilitating effective communication among the team
• Creating internal tools for your team to alleviate pain points
• Managing the entire project lifecycle
• Tracking of metrics and performance
• Troubleshooting and fixing any issues that arises
• Monitoring, managing, and securing users, packages, and security

5 Things to Mention in your DevOps Resume

Several developers have a habit of including generic information in their resumes that has no connection to the position they are applying for. This is known as skill dumping and hiring managers are aware of it. It is a major reason why some companies prefer promoting from internal teams to DevOps roles. 

So, how can you convince that hiring manager? You can do this by including relevant experience and education that pertain to that role on your resume. Before you send out that resume, be sure to mention any of these 5 things on your DevOps resume.

Linux Server Experience

Today we live in an era in which cloud computing allows us to set up a data center-like infrastructure in the least amount of time. Linux plays an important role in this. Most DevOps jobs on the market today are for companies using Linux. In addition to this, several configuration management tools on the market such as Ansible, Chef, and Puppet run on Linux. 

To gauge its importance, online communities like Reddit, StackOverflow, and Facebook have several people interested in finding out more about DevOps.

For a career in DevOps, scripting skills—preferably Python—on a Linux operating system are essential. Some of these professionals are former Windows admins trying to convert to Linux through certification exams. Even though certifications are an excellent means of validating knowledge, you may leave your team vulnerable if you fail to have hands-on Linux experience.

So, ensure to put the level of your Linux server experience you have on your resume and mention some of the projects you've worked on.

Cloud Experience

Your resume is incomplete without mentioning at least a single cloud provider. It's impossible to separate DevOps from the cloud because several DevOps functions rely exclusively on the cloud. 

Each organization has its preference for a cloud hosting provider. Many companies use Amazon Cloud Services (AWS) for cloud computing. Other companies prefer Microsoft Azure or Google Cloud Platform (GCP). 

Therefore, you must have at least a basic knowledge of one cloud provider. When applying to companies deploying to Azure, you'll need a deep understanding of Microsoft Azure tools and best practices. The same is true for AWS and GCP. 

As an important part of finding a role in DevOps, you must highlight your knowledge of these cloud platforms through their respective certifications. If you don’t have one at the moment, ensure to take them and showcase them on your resume.

Development Experience: Coding/Scripting Abilities

As a DevOps engineer or developer, programming skills are a basic requirement for anyone getting into DevOps. Having a resume without highlighting your proficiency and coding projects won’t help your job application.

Developers, especially those who want to become DevOps engineers, should be proficient in at least one programming language. Python, Java, Golang, Ruby, JavaScript, and Bashare good options for getting started in DevOps. Languages such as these are ideal for automating manual processes.

Several companies use Python as their scripting language of choice. The availability of no-code/low-code tools today does not diminish the importance of good coding skills. It'll help you quickly resolve even the smallest errors.

Communication Skills

DevOps is a culture and one of its key objectives is to foster effective communication and bridge silos within an organization.

Due to the increasing popularity of remote work, there is also a high need for better collaboration and communication among geographically dispersed workers. Include in your CV your experience managing developer teams, utilizing collaboration tools, and understanding process workflows.

Developers, systems administrators, and content teams have different skill sets, and they work with different tools. Because of this, it’s imperative to know how to facilitate communication for better product delivery.

Your resume should highlight previous roles you’ve undertaken and how your soft skills were crucial in improving communication and collaboration. Essentially, indicate how you worked with the team to achieve the company's goals. 

DevOps Training And Certifications

Putting a long list of skill sets on your DevOps resume will not guarantee you a job. However, you’ll be a more attractive applicant for that job if you back up your skills with a certification or training.

For an entry-level DevOps job, certifications help you stand out from the crowd. To an employer, it shows you have the training and the certification to prove yourself capable. 

When hiring DevOps engineers, AWS certification is considered an industry standard. Hiring managers consider certifications like AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner, CCNA, Azure Solutions Architect, and more.

Read on: How To Get AWS DevOps certification

So, if you have any relevant certifications for that DevOps role, don't forget to mention them.

Building A Career In DevOps

It can seem daunting when starting your career in DevOps. How can you get started? What skills do you need? Before building that DevOps resume or choosing a path in DevOps, ensure to know the DevOps skills in demand and prepare yourself.

You might also ask, what DevOps role is suitable for me? How do I fit in? It depends. DevOps isn’t a job, rather it’s a field that covers all processes and workflows needed to improve collaboration and hasten deployment in an organization.

With that, there are different roles you can take in DevOps. Some of the DevOps roles include:

• Software developer
• Software tester/QA engineer
• Automation architect
• Security and compliance engineer
• DevOps evangelist
• QA manager
• Release manager

Get Your First Job In DevOps

Developers have a knack for overloading their resumes with all the technical skills they’ve acquired hoping it’ll pique their prospective employer’s interest or help them get picked by automatic tracking systems. However, it can be counterproductive as hiring managers will assume it’s just skill dumping. 

The secret to getting started in DevOps is to find a balance between technical and non-technical skills. In your resume, highlight the skills you learned from your previous roles and how it fits into that particular DevOps position. If you’re new, it’s important to include the certifications and training you’ve undertaken. 

If you use these tips on your DevOps resume, you’re on your way to getting that first DevOps job.