Observability Boosts Developer Productivity: Splunk Report

Cybersecurity and observability provider, Splunk, released 'The State of Observability 2024' report in collaboration with Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG). This global study investigates how observability has become essential in managing complex IT environments and meeting increasing customer expectations. Key findings show that observability leaders achieve an impressive 2.6x return on investment, improving operational efficiency and uptime.

These organizations can resolve issues faster, enhance developer productivity, reduce costs, and elevate customer satisfaction. In light of these advantages, 86% of respondents plan to boost their observability investments. This fourth annual report, based on a survey of 1,850 IT operations professionals and developers, offers an in-depth analysis of the observability landscape.

The Anatomy of Leading Observability Practices

The report introduces a maturity framework comprising four stages of observability sophistication: foundational visibility, guided insights, proactive response, and unified workflows. Survey respondents were categorized into these stages: 45% identified as “Beginning,” 27% as “Emerging,” 17% as “Evolving,” and 11% as “Leading” organizations.

Faster Issue Resolution and Reduced Downtime

Organizations that adopt advanced observability practices gain a comprehensive view of their digital landscape, significantly reducing downtime impacts. Leading organizations report awareness of application issues within minutes or seconds of an outage—2.8 times faster than beginning organizations. They also see 80% of alerts as legitimate, compared to just 54% for beginners, minimizing time spent on false alarms. This enhanced accuracy is crucial as customer expectations for reliable digital experiences continue to rise.

Speed is vital for leaders in software development, with 76% deploying most application code on demand, versus 30% of beginners. Additionally, developers at leading organizations spend 38% more time on innovation compared to their less mature counterparts, resulting in higher productivity and profitability.

OpenTelemetry as the Foundation of Observability

The report emphasizes the increasing adoption of OpenTelemetry, an open-source standard for data collection, which is crucial for effective observability practices. About 58% of respondents rely on OpenTelemetry for their observability solutions.

The findings highlight that:

• 78% of leaders utilize OpenTelemetry, leading to lower observability costs for 57%.
• 72% of leaders leverage OpenTelemetry for access to a broader technology ecosystem, while 65% appreciate improved data control.

Leveraging AI for Operational Efficiency

AI and machine learning (ML) are now standard components of observability. Nearly all survey participants (97%) reported using AI/ML to enhance their operations, a significant increase from 66% last year. The ability to process large datasets allows organizations to identify anomalies and automate tasks more effectively:

• 57% of respondents find alert volume challenging, but leaders experience less alert noise, with 85% remediating half or more alerts through AI/ML tools, compared to only 16% of beginning organizations.
• 65% of leaders use AIOps to identify and resolve incident root causes more intelligently.

Platform Engineering: Shaping the Future of DevOps

Platform engineering is reshaping the developer experience, with 73% of respondents actively practicing it. This approach enables software engineers to utilize standardized tools and workflows, allowing them to focus on innovation rather than tool management. This shift is timely, as 66% of respondents reported staff burnout leading to turnover.

Organizations with dedicated platform engineering teams report notable improvements, including:

• 55% cite enhanced IT operations efficiency.
• 42% mention improved application performance.
• 40% indicate increased developer productivity.
• 58% of leaders view platform engineering as a competitive advantage.