Creatures of Adaptation

Living and working in global societies means that in both our real locales and our virtual communities we exist in ever expanding multicultural societies. More than ever, we are aware of different languages being spoken around us, and that our own native tongue is not always understood by those we need to communicate with. When we set out to learn a new language, the only way we become proficient is to converse, ideally in person, and even more ideally, in the country where that language is native.
Translate that into the rapid advancements in technology, and specifically in modern data platforms, and we can look at the every increasing growth of Kubernetes like a language that more and more people around us are speaking. The platform is fundamentally different from all previous computing infrastructures and not everyone is going to need it in their lives, but for those that do, it is essential to immerse in it.

Theoretical education of such a dynamic and fast-growing platform won’t be enough: the greatest challenge to enterprise businesses adopting Kubernetes is acquiring the level of proficiency that only hands-on immersion can achieve.

Cloud native adoption is exploding around the world, especially in the United States and Europe, benefiting industries such as retail, higher education and banking. While still relatively immature, Kubernetes, being the defacto standard for container management means that it has become the preferred architecture for the inevitable modernisation of enterprise applications. While in Japan and Singapore there is a priority on app modernisation, elsewhere in APJ the uptake of Kubernetes has so far been lagging.

Migrating from on-premises to the cloud, and then again into a containerised cloud infrastructure, and finding the best vendor to facilitate, is time-consuming and can distract from day-to-day operations. But there are compelling, if not vital, reasons why huge organisations such as retailers Walmart and Adidas, financial institution Capital One, news outlet The New York Times, streaming platform Spotify and high-traffic consumer apps Tinder and Airbnb have integrated Kubernetes in their services. If the entire APJ region is going to keep up with the rest of the world, moving across to Kubernetes is an inexorable part of business growth strategy, so it’s a good idea to start thinking about what the challenges will be along the likely timeframe for migration to this new architectural language

Applying the new Language

There are multiple tools that can be utilised, but the first is mindset. Understanding why Kubernetes is on track to be the enterprise open source platform of choice, and how its deployment, management and scalability offer freedom and flexibility in business, will benefit your enterprise is the first step to speaking its language, even with its amplified level of abstraction. Some research into successful case studies, including the mega businesses referenced above, goes a long way to understanding how a business can be transformed by re-engineering their architecture for the future rather than hanging on to the traditional, often clunky, workings of the past.

Kubernetes attracts adoption because of its management as an infrastructure to scale containerized workloads, and as an enterprise grows quickly its data also expands and both storage and security must be prioritised. In any business model, data management is fundamental to success and survival, as well as trust from all stakeholders in organisation – internal and external partners and customers. As applications are modernized, they might be considered for a move from monolithic architectures to more micro-service based containerized application and also the likelihood of net new workloads being created as cloud native are high. With that in mind the application of the new language of Kubernetes is critical to both IT operations and platform professionals as well as the orginizations themselves.

Fluidity with Kubernetes

As the new language of the Kubernetes world becomes more prevalent to the point where it is likely to become the standard for open-source infrastructure, the question comes down to this: Do you want to join the conversation and communicate effectively in the world you’re in? If your business is on that path, the support is out there from other companies already speaking the language. Now is the time to start learning the new language.

Bonus Learning the Language of Kubernetes Cheat Codes

Start by learning the basic Kubernetes concepts and terminology such as pods, deployments, services, and ingress.
Practice using the Kubernetes command-line interface (kubectl) to deploy and manage applications.
Use online resources and tutorials to familiarize yourself with the Kubernetes API and how it is used to configure and manage resources.
Join online communities and forums to learn from experienced Kubernetes users and share your own experiences and challenges.
Attend conferences and workshops to learn from industry experts and gain hands-on experience with Kubernetes.
Take online courses or enroll in a Kubernetes certification program to enhance your knowledge and skills.
Experiment with different Kubernetes tools and technologies such as Helm, Istio, and Kubernetes operators to gain a deeper understanding of how Kubernetes works.
Collaborate with other Kubernetes users and contribute to open-source projects to gain practical experience and build your professional network.
Stay up-to-date with the latest developments in the Kubernetes ecosystem and adapt your skills and knowledge to new technologies and trends.