Balanced teams of software engineers, designers, and product managers set the pace of innovation at a company. Companies consistently focus on ways to attract the best talent in pursuit of setting their organization on a strong course of rapid innovation. However, keeping these teams agile, innovative, and free from blockers is a challenge in itself.
Software engineers want to do what they do best, and that’s to focus on writing code that solves problems for users — not managing application platforms or infrastructure. That’s why the developer experience is just as important for leaders to consider as product design, or validating the business value of a given product, service, or feature.
Google Cloud’s tools are quickly becoming a favorite among development teams. In fact, a 2020 IDC study found that developers deployed and released new applications and features faster with Google Cloud.
But what sets it apart? Let’s unpack why developers love Google Cloud.
Native Kubernetes Environment
Kubernetes has come to rule the development world, and it’s increasingly important for developers to become proficient in it. Three in four firms surveyed in a 2020 Cloud Native Computing Foundation report said they were using Kubernetes in one form or another.
One advantage of using Google Cloud is it lets developers use Kubernetes in its native environment. Since Google developed Kubernetes, you can enjoy a simpler setup instead of building it on top of an application as you would need to with other cloud service providers. Google Cloud also supports some Kubernetes features and updates faster and automatically.
In the long run, using Kubernetes on Google Cloud saves time and money and shortens the learning curve for developers already using it.
“I was pleasantly surprised at how easily my AWS skills translated to Google Cloud. For me, though, Google Cloud’s biggest differentiator is its advanced CLI tools. The Google Cloud data ecosystem is also a night and day difference for ETL, OLTP, and OLAP. Plus, Kubernetes integrates well since it’s a Google-developed tool.”
— Sam Hai, Google Cloud Architect at 66degrees
Easy Setup & Configuration
To get the most out of any tool, it first needs to be learned, then implemented. And how fast developers get up to speed depends on the learnability of the tool. This is where Google Cloud excels.
Google provides a cohesive set of tools with easy setup and room for customization. Many features can be used straight out of the box.
Some developers might also find Google Cloud workflows more intuitive. For example, Google Cloud follows standard naming conventions for IAM roles, whereas other cloud service providers have created their own, extending the learning curve.
“The cloud is more efficient and effective than ever with Google. Instead of giving you a crate of components with head-scratching assembly instructions, Google Cloud hands you the keys to your new car.”
— Stephan Eden, Cloud Engineer at 66degrees
Community-driven
Unlike proprietary software, community-driven technologies are often open-source, with the goal of making them freely accessible to anyone wanting to use them. As a result, open-source, community-driven projects enable developers and engineers to collaborate and innovate quicker.
Google Cloud has a long track record of contributing to the open-source community with projects like Kubernetes and TensorFlow. Since many Google-developed products are open-source, there’s a bigger community push to improve and release features and products available within the Google Cloud Platform, giving developers more say in how the tools they use are built.
Google Cloud Migration Services
These and other features are what sets Google Cloud apart. 66degrees provides Google Cloud migration services and can accelerate your development team’s move. Talk to one of our cloud experts to see if Google Cloud is right for your team.
