Best of 2021 – The ‘Great Resignation’ in DevOps? Bah, Humbug

As we close out 2021, we at DevOps.com wanted to highlight the most popular articles of the year. Following is the tenth in our series of the Best of 2021.

Like me, you have probably heard a lot about the “Great Resignation” lately. I’ll admit—at first I did not think it had anything to with tech jobs, especially not DevOps or cybersecurity jobs. After all, there aren’t many workers in those fields who aren’t well-paid (though, of course, when it comes to pay, it’s all relative). 

When I first heard about the Great Resignation, I assumed it referred specifically to fast food workers or, perhaps, other restaurant, hospitality and retail industry jobs. You know—the kind in which people struggle to make $15 an hour. But then I began to hear it applied to better-paying tech jobs. Finally, I interviewed several executives who cited the Great Resignation as one reason that they were undermanned in key development, DevOps and cybersecurity positions.

I know what you are thinking: Tech execs will latch on to any excuse to explain why they are short-handed in these skilled positions. I agree with you, to a point. But I have had the chance to speak with several folks at some in-person conferences I’ve attended recently (It’s just not the same online!) and I began to see a trend. The almost mythical work-life balance/quality of life trend was back with a vengeance.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many workers—even in highly compensated, challenging jobs like software development, DevOps, QA and cybersecurity—had actually changed their perspective as a result of working from home all those months. True, many of them had already been working from home. But they still had a “mothership” that they went to; however occasionally. They still gathered with coworkers at conferences or off-site meetings; they still were part of the “culture”.  With COVID-19, despite the best efforts of HR teams and managers to foster and nourish that “culture”, it just wasn’t the same. Much the same way we fooled ourselves into thinking Zoom and Teams were as good as in-person, we thought that we could keep our teams tightly bound and drinking the company culture Kool-Aid. 

In place of that corporate culture, when workers weren’t working (and it did take some time for many of them to learn how to use the on/off switch), they began to actually do other things. They spent time with their immediate families. They tried new hobbies, they started (and completed!) DIY projects and more. Lo and behold, they found there was life beyond code. 

This radical notion of doing things that were not work-related was not solely due to a failure to pay these people enough money. It was not about letting them work with the tools of their choice. It wasn’t even about who they worked with. At the end of the day, it was because they discovered they had a life, and that they enjoyed that life.

I welcome this trend. I think it will mean less burnout and more productive humans, at the end of the day. Heck, we may even see birth rates rise and divorce rates fall. We may all live happily ever after. 

When it comes to the Great Resignation, in the immortal words of John Belushi, “Bu-uut nooo.” Notwithstanding all of the above being true, I don’t think this is what’s leading developers, DevOps or cybersecurity folks to leave their jobs in droves. They are setting boundaries, yes, but they aren’t quitting just because of pay. No—they are leaving for the same reasons they did before. No sooner do they settle into their new jobs than they are being contacted by the ever-present recruiters offering them more money, more benefits and now more work-life balance. Add to this the growth in demand for these positions worsening an already understaffed market and there you have it. A shortage of workers to fill open positions. This convergence of circumstances makes it easier for them to hop from one job to the next, as well.

At the end of the day, we still don’t have enough software developers, DevOps folks, QA or cybersecurity talent. This is driving the market. But Great Resignation? Bah, humbug!