In a big company (or a small company acting big), many of us application developers can’t do common actions, e.g.
- install open source or commercial software (not even development tools),
- push 3rd-party software to production,
- install the latest version of an already approved software,
- allow open access to internal web apps,
- write about work on the public internet or within the private intranet,
- test web apps on personal devices or external services that aren’t within the company,
- push to github or codepen or jsfiddle or npm,
- demonstrate a prototype or proof-of-concept project,
- ask or answer a question on a public forum,
- etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.
A majority of application developers are in this situation, and many want to improve the place where they work. But how to do so? How to navigate the perilous waters of opaque approval processes, software certifications, security scanning, collective inertia, auto installation procedures? Who to talk to? What to do? Is it worth it? How do we keep the soldiers on the farm after they’ve seen Paris?
There are answers and strategies for success, and in many cases, the effort is worthwhile, for the company and for the enterprising enterprise developer. The answer does not have to be “leave” or “ignore” or “submit”.
I must write more about this…