Not that long ago, the role of the DBA was comprised of a lot of mechanical tasks, including upgrades, basic system maintenance, backups and recovery, monitoring, performance tuning, and troubleshooting. With the advent of the cloud, automation and DevOps, the DBA’s role and responsibilities are rapidly evolving.
There are even some who would argue that automation will replace DBAs. Don’t believe the hype! Instead, you should realize that now is the time for DBAs to step forward and take charge of the opportunity before them. I recently wrote an article in which I discussed the ten most significant ways the role of the DBA has changed which was featured in Computer Business Review. I invite you to give it a read and share your feedback and comments here. Whether you're a DBA or have DBAs that work for you, we’d love to hear your perspective on the topic.
I also presented this viewpoint at Gartner conferences and Postgres Vision, and it is clear to me that the subject is top of mind with many in the database community based on the follow-up conversations I have had with attendees. Next week, my colleague, Frank Days, EDB’s Vice President of Marketing, will be keynoting a talk on this topic at the Gartner Catalyst Conference 2018 in San Diego, CA. If you happen to be attending this event, be sure to make some time to attend Frank’s talk. And get there early; when I presented this talk at the Gartner Data & Analytics Conference 2018 in Grapevine, TX earlier this year, it was standing room only!
The world today is moving toward the cloud, database-as-a-service, DevOps and automation. The challenge for DBAs is to look at this new world and adapt in order to bring more value to the business. I know it's possible, but see what you think. Give my article a read and share your feedback and comments here.