Helping Government Software Teams Move Faster | Carnegie Mellon's Robin Yeman
Plus, the productivity cycle, why 20% for tech debt doesn't work, and understanding and exercising judgement.
Both the aerospace and defense sectors are renowned for long project timelines rife with silos and hurdles that get in the way of productivity. With over 20 years of experience at Lockheed Martin and elsewhere, Robin Yeman literally wrote the book Industrial DevOps on how to implement DevOps principles at traditional behemoths to build faster, safer systems.
As Space Domain Lead at Carnegie Mellon's Software Engineering Institute, Robin’s pioneering work reveals how applying DevOps principles can significantly improve speed, quality, and collaboration at traditional enterprises. She emphasizes the importance of cross-functional teams, modular architectures, and a growth mindset in driving innovation and overcoming the challenges of digital transformation within the aerospace and defense sectors.
Tune in to gain practical insights about the application of DevOps in large-scale systems, the role of organizational design in fostering communication, and how these principles have helped government software teams.
“The Department of Defense and the intelligence communities really started looking at the environment and saying, ‘Hey, we, we have to go faster, right?’ Currently today, if we were to launch a satellite, it takes 90 months. That's just too long, right? And we've got new entrants into the market, like SpaceX or Relativity, and they can do it so much faster. So, so why is that? How is that?
My goals and objectives are really to enable government organizations to become digital so that they can do Agile. They can do DevOps. They can do model based systems engineering. They can build digital twins. They can bring in artificial intelligence and machine learning. I usually refer to this as all of the tools in your digital engineering value stream.”
Episode Highlights:
1:12 Robin’s book Industrial DevOps
4:00 How did Robin’s work at Lockheed Martin lead to Carnegie Mellon?
5:46 How should you get started thinking about industrial DevOps?
8:01 How Robin’s research came together across varied experiences
10:25 What patterns can you adapt to be more successful?
16:54 Quantitative vs. qualitative data when making long term plans
20:27 Shifting left in Industrial DevOps
The Download
The Download is engineering leadership content we’re reading, watching, and attending that we think you might find valuable.
1. The productivity cycle
Productivity comes in waves — Alex Sexton’s blog “The Productivity Cycle” examines how creative workers can maximize their output by working with their natural productivity cycle. While caffeine can be strategically used to boost focus during peak times, it might reduce your overall energy levels and not be a sufficient substitute for rest.
Alex proposes engaging in new projects to reignite creativity during low-motivation periods and striking a balance between intense work and restorative breaks to optimize productivity.
Read: The Productivity Cycle
2. 20% for tech debt doesn't work
While dedicating 20% of your team’s time to tech debt is a good rule of thumb, you cannot overlook the importance of strategically aligning that work with business goals.
and argue that to maximize the benefits of this approach, you need to communicate the value to non-tech stakeholders and integrate your tech debt efforts into the product roadmap with clear objectives and progress tracking.
Engineering Leader's Guide to Goals and Reporting (Sponsor)
How can you ensure that your engineering team is not just setting goals but actually achieving them? Whether you're just starting your metrics journey or looking to refine your approach, LinearB’s Engineering Leaders Guide to Goals and Reporting is packed with strategies to enhance your team's impact.
Learn how to elevate your engineering performance, align R&D with business objectives, and deliver more value using clear goals and structured reporting today.
3. Understanding and exercising judgment
“Having good judgment isn’t useful by itself. You need to exercise it to make sure you and your team are going in the right direction.” -
Achieving senior-level promotions and gaining control over your work requires expert-level judgment. To develop this skill,
’s article suggests understanding your organization's role within the company through discussions with managers and reviewing strategy documents.
4. Wiring The Winning Organization Pt. 1
If you want to understand how organizational structure impacts your team’s performance more deeply, we highly recommend watching our episode with Steven Spear, co-author of Wiring the Winning Organization.
Steven highlights why some organizations consistently outperform others, demonstrating how the best organizations create systems that enhance problem-solving through slowification, simplification, and amplification, aligning processes with cognitive strengths.