DevOps certifications offer significant value to software developers, whether they are new to the field or aiming for career progression, increased earnings, or fresh opportunities. Discover the essential insights here.
DevOps practices are steadily gaining traction across all development landscapes, from nascent startups to colossal multinational corporations. The global DevOps market, encompassing both products and services, saw a rise from $10.56 billion in 2023 to $12.4 billion in 2024, as reported by The Business Research Company. This same firm projects the market to swell to an impressive $37.33 billion by 2029.
With IT infrastructure growing in complexity, making processes more intricate, DevOps is becoming indispensable. It automates sophisticated management tasks, reducing the need for human intervention. Tasha Jones, founder of Espire Collective, a talent marketplace, notes, “Businesses across all industries face constant pressure to deploy software more rapidly, with enhanced reliability, and at an expanded scale, all while navigating increasingly complex cloud and hybrid setups.” She adds, “DevOps methodologies are key to tackling this demanding situation.”
Jones clarifies that the demand extends beyond sheer numbers to validated expertise. “A subtle disparity exists between the talent pool and the scarcity of seasoned professionals capable of designing, scaling, and effectively managing DevOps systems,” she explains. “Certifications offer a mechanism for employers to mitigate risk, particularly as DevOps roles evolve to encompass reliability, security, and operational resilience, moving beyond mere tool proficiency.”
Evidently, the need for DevOps certifications is on the rise, though Ashley Ward, principal solutions architect at Minimus, a security testing software vendor, points out it’s “more a product of organizational imperatives than engineering philosophy.”
Ward explains, “As DevOps methodologies permeate larger, regulated, and less inherently digital organizations, leaders require robust methods for evaluating skills comprehensively.” He concludes, “The surge in DevOps certifications is propelled less by engineers themselves and more by current organizational demands.”
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Another factor fueling the demand for DevOps certifications is the imperative to deliver products to users with greater speed and efficacy, while also prioritizing security and data privacy. Sanjeev Kumar, founder of OurNetHelps, a global provider of digital tools for professionals and students, states, “Throughout my career developing and managing production systems, I’ve observed a distinct increase in the necessity for DevOps certifications.”
Kumar emphasizes, “Businesses are continuously pressured to accelerate delivery, maintain system stability, and expand infrastructure without expanding their engineering workforce significantly.” He adds, “Cloud-native platforms, microservices, and automated deployment pipelines are now commonplace, necessitating engineers who can seamlessly operate within these ecosystems.”
Predictably, current high-demand DevOps certifications are primarily centered on cloud and platform technologies, as noted by Kumar.
How Certifications Influence Hiring
While not a substitute for practical DevOps experience, certifications undeniably play a role in recruitment.
Ward points out, “Certifications offer a straightforward method to indicate foundational proficiency and mitigate hiring risk, especially in scenarios where hiring managers lack the capacity to thoroughly evaluate each applicant’s technical depth.”
He notes that heightened focus on security, reliability, and cloud expenditure management has also contributed. “Certifications frequently serve as a tool for risk mitigation, rather than a definitive indicator of exceptional skill,” he states. “Even if leaders acknowledge that a certification isn’t the sole criterion, it still instills confidence when navigating intricate hiring landscapes.”
Ward suggests that DevOps certifications hold the most sway during the initial phases of hiring, prior to the technical interview. “They assist applicants in clearing the preliminary resume review, especially when conducted by HR personnel or general recruiters rather than seasoned engineers,” he explains. “Coordinating interviews with numerous senior technical leaders is costly, factoring in the interview, preparation, assessment, and subsequent actions. Any improvement in early candidate filtering translates to tangible cost savings for large enterprises.”
Although certifications seldom dictate final hiring choices independently, Ward asserts that they can significantly boost an applicant’s likelihood of securing an interview, particularly for entry-level and mid-career roles. “While a respected Kubernetes or cloud certification doesn’t automatically signify an outstanding engineer, it does assure hiring teams that the candidate possesses familiarity with contemporary delivery methodologies,” he comments.
Applicants holding certifications like AWS Certified DevOps Engineer and Kubernetes Administrator are perceived as more appealing, as they demonstrate practical abilities beyond mere theoretical knowledge, according to Joshua Haghani, founder and CEO of software firm Lumion.
Haghani states that certifications offer proof that a job applicant is adept at constructing continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipelines and deploying cloud environments efficiently at scale.
“DevOps certifications provide a structured pathway to learning in a complex domain, ensuring that certified individuals gain practical experience with tools such as Docker, Jenkins, or Terraform,” he explains. “Companies are reluctant to invest in candidates who require extended periods to become productive contributors.”
Kumar affirms that while certifications are not a substitute for practical experience, they undeniably enhance a candidate’s appeal. “A pertinent DevOps certification indicates that an engineer grasps contemporary deployment workflows, cloud infrastructure, automation, and reliability principles,” he states. He concludes that for employers, this diminishes hiring risk, as these competencies directly impact system uptime, security, and delivery pace.
Advantages of DevOps Certifications
Beyond assisting software developers and engineers in securing employment, DevOps certifications offer a range of additional advantages.
Ward highlights, “The main advantage of DevOps certifications lies in their structured learning approach and the establishment of a common terminology.” He adds, “Robust certifications mandate that professionals comprehend not only the tools, but also foundational concepts like automation, resilience, security, and systems thinking.”
Ward contends that the paramount value of DevOps certifications isn’t the credential itself, but rather the unified communication framework they foster among teams. “For individuals, certifications streamline the hiring journey and can facilitate career advancement,” he remarks. “Certified applicants frequently navigate initial recruitment phases with greater ease.”
Further reading: Transitioning from DevOps to CTO: Eight immediate steps to take.
From a managerial standpoint, Ward explains that certifications enhance team communication by aligning assumptions and terminology. “This common ground proves particularly beneficial when engineering teams collaborate closely with security, compliance, or audit departments,” he states. “In real-world scenarios, organizations frequently leverage certification-endorsed best practices to validate enhancements like implementing infrastructure as code, bolstering CI/CD safeguards, or fortifying software supply chain security.”
Jones notes that a very concrete benefit of certification is entry to particular roles. “In regulated or compliance-heavy settings, like certain government sectors, specific certifications are frequently a mandatory prerequisite for consideration,” she explains. “Even exceptionally skilled professionals might not clear initial screenings without these credentials.”
More generally, certifications signify a dedication to ongoing professional development, according to Jones. “DevOps tools and methodologies advance rapidly, and leaders appreciate professionals who show they are keeping up-to-date, instead of solely depending on prior experience,” she observes. “This is crucial for both public and private entities, as obsolete automation or cloud operation strategies can swiftly translate into operational vulnerabilities.”
Certifications linked to specific platforms or services hold particular significance. Ward comments, “Given that DevOps is now largely intertwined with cloud platforms, certifications from major providers like Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services continue to be in high demand.”
Technically speaking, Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) certifications are especially well-esteemed, according to Ward. “These certifications demonstrate practical cloud-native operational expertise, rather than just abstract theoretical understanding,” he adds.
Though cloud certifications are not perfectly interchangeable, Ward states that organizations typically observe that skills are transferable between platforms with appropriate onboarding. “If an individual comprehends cloud fundamentals on one platform, most companies are confident they can transition to another with adequate assistance,” he explains.
Kumar believes one of the most substantial advantages of DevOps certifications is the systematic approach they instill in engineers for thinking about systems. “They encompass CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure-as-code, monitoring, security, and operations as a unified, interconnected workflow,” he details. “This holistic systems perspective is considerably more beneficial than merely understanding an individual tool.”
Widely Recognized DevOps Certifications
A DevOps certification’s worth is derived from the breadth of skills and platforms it encompasses. The following options are highlighted by experts as being particularly sought after.
AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional
This certification, alongside other cloud-centric credentials, has surged in popularity due to the persistent expansion of cloud service adoption and the widespread embrace of cloud-native environments. The AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional credential validates technical proficiency in domains like provisioning, operating, and overseeing distributed application systems within the AWS ecosystem, as stated by Amazon Web Services.
Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA)
The CKA program was established by the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) and the Linux Foundation as part of a continuous initiative to bolster the Kubernetes ecosystem. The program aims to affirm that individuals achieving CKA certification possess the requisite skills, understanding, and capability to effectively fulfill the duties of Kubernetes administrators, as outlined by the Cloud Native Computing Foundation.
Google Professional Cloud DevOps Engineer
The Google Professional Cloud DevOps Engineer certification continues to be highly sought after, driven by the expansion of cloud and cloud-native development landscapes. This credential showcases an individual’s proficiency in implementing processes and capabilities across the entire development lifecycle, utilizing Google’s endorsed methodologies and tools, as stated by Google Cloud. Such certified professionals facilitate streamlined software and infrastructure deployment, effectively balancing system reliability with rapid delivery.
Microsoft Certified Azure DevOps Engineer Expert
The Microsoft Certified Azure DevOps Engineer Expert certification validates the capability to leverage Microsoft’s DevOps tools for ensuring continuous security, integration, testing, delivery, deployment, monitoring, and feedback. Certified individuals are adept at designing and executing workflows, fostering collaboration, managing communication, handling source control, and implementing automation. According to Microsoft, competencies gained include establishing continuous integration, formulating release strategies using Azure and GitHub, and overseeing infrastructure as code within Azure.
