If you are responsible for batch job scheduling, you are a developer.
In spite of the popularity of “DevOps” many IT pros are still divided into two camps: development and operations. Although both groups do much more than their titles imply, they tend to look at enterprise solutions from different perspectives. In our area of batch job scheduling, we see a lot of humility among operations personnel – the people responsible for the day-to-day IT tasks. While they may not be writing thousands of lines of code for their organization, they are nonetheless developers. They work on the conditional logic that gets work done in their enterprise. A finely-tuned batch job schedule can be as valuable as a custom application and should receive the same level of attention as the latest frameworks, server configurations and programming languages.
Batch Job Scheduling: Programming Enterprise IT
Just as programming processes data in a consistent, repeatable manner, batch job scheduling automates IT business processes enterprise-wide: applications, reports, backups, queries, ETL, etc. It would be great if all those processes followed the same standards for scheduling and automation, but they don’t. So, it falls on IT Operations to build a language of automation – often a combination of batch scripts, native schedulers and custom applications. It may also include outsourced labor and a calendar reminders, just to keep the workflows moving at the same pace of the business. As with any business system that grows organically, there comes a point when a development mindset is needed to reign in costs and standardize workflows.
“Code” Your Workflows (No Actual Coding Required)
We designed JAMS Job Scheduler to enable IT Operations pros to “code” workflows without code. Without digging into databases and code blocks, JAMS users can apply powerful scheduling and automation logic to the day-to-day business processes – running reports, moving files, backing up servers, provisioning VMs, calculating key variables, and updating inventory – on a virtually unlimited scale. And, we designed it to support the wide variety of platforms and applications organizations use to get the work done. Unlike curating a hodgepodge of scheduling tools, when IT Operations pros develop a centralized schedule with JAMS, they build a real asset for their organization, one that is as valuable as a custom application.
You Are a Developer
Don’t underestimate the value of developing your organization’s centralized batch job schedule. Request a demo of JAMS and see how you can lead your IT operations team to smart automation.