Study Finds Only 42% of Applications on Kubernetes Successfully Make it to Production

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 8, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- D2iQ, provider of the leading independent Kubernetes platform built to power smarter Day 2 operations, today announced the results from its second annual Kubernetes-focused survey of IT decision makers and developers, Kubernetes in the Enterprise Annual Report: Production Deployments Increase, but Challenges Persist. The study found that while 75% of organizations are using Kubernetes in production or pre-production environments, 100% of those organizations agree that Kubernetes deployments come with challenges. This is evidenced as only 42% of organizations claim that all applications running on Kubernetes successfully made it to Day 2 environments.

Kubernetes has become the technology of choice to power enterprise cloud native journeys, and organizations are expanding their use of Kubernetes to support both innovation-driven initiatives and critical workloads. According to the survey, 36% of senior IT decision makers successfully running applications on Kubernetes in Day 2 operations say it is critical to the long-term success of their company. Rapid digital transformations are also fueling massive growth in data volumes, with 43% of respondents citing data analytics or machine learning as the most popular Kubernetes workload.

"This year's report validates what we've been seeing as the Kubernetes market continues to mature," said Tobi Knaup, founder and CEO, D2iQ. "Without the right technology and expertise in place, complexity challenges will kill Kubernetes deployments in Day 2 production environments. Enterprises need to engage a technology partner that can simplify deployments, bolster security requirements and ensure continuity."

Key findings from the study include:

• Kubernetes growth in AI and ML workloads displaced the 2020 survey's top choice of application build structures with 40% of respondents citing it as the most popular workload. In addition, 88% of organizations agree that in the next two years, Kubernetes will be the platform of choice for running AI and ML workloads. Rounding out the top three most popular Kubernetes workloads were Windows containers (34%) and distributed data services (33%).  
• On average, 53% of all an organization's projects are currently in production on Kubernetes. This is an increase from last year's survey which found that 42% of projects were currently in production using Kubernetes.
• 77% of respondents stated that it took six months or less to get their organization's Kubernetes deployments to production. The average time that it took was four and a half months, down a half month from 2020.

The study also demonstrates the positive impact Kubernetes has on the professional development of developers and engineers. 41% of developers say Kubernetes makes them really excited to come to work every day and that it brings their entire IT team together. It's important to note, however, that nearly one quarter (23%) of developers claim Kubernetes makes them feel extremely burnt out.

"The added complexity, security and governance concerns and cluster sprawl that comes with Kubernetes adoption is increasing the strain on developers and architects," said Deepak Goel, chief technology officer, D2iQ. "To prevent burnout and improve critical talent retention, IT leaders need to effectively manage Kubernetes deployments when scaling in production environments and identify the right technology resources that can guide and support their teams to ensure long-term success."

The study was conducted by independent research firm Vanson Bourne in Q2 and Q3 2021. To download a free copy of the ten-page Kubernetes in the Enterprise Annual Report: Production Deployments Increase, but Challenges Persist, please go to https://d2iq.com/resources/report/kubernetes-in-the-enterprise-annual-report-2021.

For more information, visit: www.D2IQ.com.

About D2iQ
D2iQ is the leading provider of enterprise-grade cloud platforms that enable organizations to embrace open source and cloud native innovations while delivering smarter Day 2 operations. With unmatched experience driving some of the world's largest cloud deployments, D2iQ empowers organizations to better navigate and accelerate cloud native journeys with enterprise-grade technologies, training, professional services and support. Whether you are deploying your first Kubernetes workload, implementing production ready machine learning models, or looking to educate your developers on the benefits of cloud native, D2iQ has the expertise, services and technology to enable you on the journey. D2iQ is headquartered in San Francisco with additional offices in London and Hamburg, Germany. D2iQ investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Khosla Ventures, Koch Disruptive Technologies, Microsoft, and T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc. Find us at https://d2iq.com/

About Vanson Bourne
Vanson Bourne is an independent specialist in market research for the technology sector. Their reputation for robust and credible research-based analysis is founded upon rigorous research principles and their ability to seek the opinions of senior decision makers across technical and business functions, in all business sectors and all major markets.

SOURCE D2iQ