Kingfisher plc, the home improvement leader behind brands like B&Q and Screwfix, is making strides to enhance its developers’ work experience.
The company is leveraging GitLab to revolutionize its software development approach, emphasizing security, streamlining tools, and automating repetitive tasks. The main objective is to simplify workflows for its teams while achieving faster and better results.
At the recent GitLab DevSecOps World Tour in London, Parmar, a tech leader at Kingfisher, shared insights about the company’s transformation during an engaging discussion with GitLab’s Sherrod Patching. Parmar highlighted how GitLab is enabling Kingfisher’s teams to transition from concepts to completed software more efficiently and smoothly.
Contextual Background
Kingfisher is a significant player in the market, operating over 2,000 stores across eight European countries and generating £13 billion in revenue last year. With such a substantial reliance on technology, Kingfisher began using GitLab in 2016 and has gradually improved its operations with the platform, moving to the Premium tier in 2020 and transitioning from on-premises systems to the cloud. The company has also developed a library of reusable CI/CD components, simplifying software testing and deployment processes.
Transforming Metrics into Insights
Kingfisher excels at monitoring meaningful metrics, such as deployment frequency and the time taken to implement changes. However, the key is translating these numbers into insights that resonate with company leadership.
“Executives don’t really care if a merge request takes 15 minutes or 20,” Parmar stated. “What they are concerned about is the impact on revenue or efficiency.” By connecting technical improvements to financial outcomes, Kingfisher ensures leadership support for the changes.
Prioritizing People
For Parmar, the transformation process goes beyond enhancing software; it aims to alleviate developers’ frustrations. Kingfisher has established a “developer experience squad” dedicated to removing tedious, manual tasks, allowing engineers more time for innovation.
“We focus on the hearts and minds of our people… recognizing that individuals can be attached to their workflow processes,” Parmar explained. “People have various methods for building their pipelines. We need to understand their needs and workflows, then collaborate to find suitable solutions. Afterwards, we present them with data demonstrating the improvements. Instead of dictating their needs, we identify and resolve their pain points, fostering a strong rapport with our engineers.”
Future Aspirations for Kingfisher
Looking forward, Kingfisher’s technology teams have ambitious plans. They aim to integrate security earlier in the development process (known as “shifting left”), reduce the number of tools they use, and increase automation. By 2025, they also intend to explore GitLab’s AI-powered features to enhance productivity.
However, Parmar emphasizes that the key to success lies in prioritizing people. Ultimately, this initiative is not just about tools or processes; it’s about making life easier for teams and enabling them to perform at their best.