Evolution of Incident Management
w/ Chris Evans, Co-founder & CPO of Incident.io
Incident management is a critical aspect of maintaining the reliability and integrity of systems. Recently, we had the pleasure of speaking with Chris Evans, Co-founder and CPO of Incident.io, to learn how incident response has evolved, and how engineers can prepare themselves for modern incident response. You can see a recording of the full conversation here.
The Centralized Operations Team
Traditionally, incident management was handled by a centralized operations team. These experts monitored dashboards, identified issues, and coordinated responses. However, the advent of DevOps has decentralized this function, distributing the responsibility across the entire engineering team. Today, the very people who build and deploy software are also tasked with managing incidents, which introduces both challenges and opportunities.
The Decentralization of Incident Response
The advent of DevOps has distributed the responsibility of incident response across the entire engineering team. Today, the engineers who build and deploy software are also tasked with managing incidents. This shift has led to a broader, more inclusive approach to incident management, where everyone in the organization is involved in the response process.
Why the Shift?
This shift is largely driven by the need for faster, more flexible incident response. As software development cycles accelerate, the traditional centralized model struggles to keep pace. By involving the entire engineering team in incident management, organizations can respond more quickly to issues as they arise.
This shift to distributed incident management also means more people need to be trained in incident response. While this democratization of incident management can introduce complexities, it also enables organizations to be more resilient. When every team member is prepared to handle incidents, the organization as a whole can respond more swiftly and effectively.
Pros and Cons of Each Approach
The centralized operations team approach has its advantages, such as consistent processes and highly trained experts handling incidents. However, it can also be slower and less adaptable to rapid changes.
On the other hand, the decentralized model offers greater flexibility and faster response times, but it can introduce inconsistencies and require more extensive training across a larger group of people.
Hybrid Approaches
Many organizations are now adopting hybrid approaches that combine elements of both models. For instance, they may still have a central team that handles major incidents and coordinates responses across the entire organization (Marketing, Support, Customer Success, PR, etc.), while also empowering individual engineering teams to manage smaller, more routine incidents. This approach maintains consistency and leverages specialized expertise when needed, while benefiting from the speed and flexibility of a decentralized model.
What does this mean for engineers?
Redefining What Constitutes an Incident. For engineers, this evolution means a shift in how incidents are defined and managed. For example, at Incident.io, an incident is defined as anything that disrupts planned work with a degree of urgency. This can range from a minor bug affecting a key customer to a complete database failure. By broadening the definition, organizations can gain valuable insights into their operations and better prioritize their efforts.
Documenting and Communicating During Incidents. Engineers should document their debugging process in real-time, creating a clear trail of their actions and thoughts. This practice helps in troubleshooting and serves as a learning resource for other team members. Clear documentation can streamline the handover process if the incident escalates and requires additional support.
Leveraging AI for Incident Management. AI can automatically summarize incident channels, making it easier for teams to stay updated on ongoing issues. However, it's still important to keep humans in the loop. While AI is good at summarizing information, they’re not perfect. AI-generated summaries should be reviewed by incident leads to ensure accuracy and prevent the dissemination of incorrect information.
Running Effective Post-Incident Reviews. Post-incident reviews are crucial for learning and improvement. Serious incidents should always be followed by a face-to-face review. This allows for comprehensive discussions, clarifying any uncertainties and ensuring that the entire team benefits from the insights gained.
Shifting the Culture Around Incidents. A key takeaway from our conversation is the cultural shift required to handle incidents effectively. Organizations must foster an environment where incidents are not seen as failures but as opportunities to learn and improve. Encouraging open communication and collaboration across all departments, from engineering to PR and Legal, is essential.
For the full details and first hand suggestions from Chris, check out our video interview.