Gene Kim

Gene Kim is a best-selling author and respected thought leader known for his work in digital transformation and technology management. He is the co-author of the award-winning and best-selling book “The Phoenix Project: A Novel About IT, DevOps, and the Helping Your Business Win”, and its prequel “The Visible Ops Handbook”. With a background in computer science, Kim has dedicated the past 25 years of his career to exploring and promoting the aspects of business and technology that drive successful results.

As a sought-after professional speaker, Kim was named “The Most Influential Thought Leader” in 2016 and 2017 by the DevOps Enterprise Forum. He also co-founded IT Revolution, an organization dedicated to advancing the development of IT and DevOps principles, in 2014.

Gene Kim’s first book, “The Visible Ops Handbook” (2004), was co-authored with Kevin Behr and George Spafford. The book serves as a guide to organizations serious about building an environment where “technology is used to deliver improved business results”. It presents a three-step formula for success: Assess, Implement, and Manage.

Kim’s second book, “The Phoenix Project: A Novel About IT, DevOps, and Helping Your Business Win” (2013), was co-authored with George Spafford and Kevin Behr. This book takes the principles from “The Visible Ops Handbook” and tells the story of an IT manager, Bill, whose company is going through an IT crisis. Bill takes on a mission to save the company from imminent failure by applying the concepts from “The Visible Ops Handbook” and modernizing the IT infrastructure.

In 2016, Kim wrote “The DevOps Handbook: How to Create World-Class Agility, Reliability, and Security in Technology Organizations”. Co-authored with Patrick Debois, John Willis, and Jez Humble, the book challenges traditional IT operations and provides an in-depth look at the technical, cultural, and operational changes necessary to achieve DevOps success. Through the book and his work with IT Revolution, Kim has helped to redefine and elevate the software development and IT operations professions.

Kim’s mission is to create exceptional value for technology leaders and teams by addressing high-impact topics ranging from agile to DevOps, security and infrastructure automation to cloud technologies and data science. His commitment to furthering the modern state of IT and DevOps has increased the understanding, communication, implementation and dedication to success with these technologies.

In 2017, Kim was recognized for his start-up work with The Chrétien Foundation, which works to “empower and enable leaders to achieve extraordinary things and inspire people to innovate, solve problems and become agents of positive change”. He was also featured in the “50 Greatest Technology Minds” list by Federal Computer Week.

Whether through his books, his works with the Chretien Foundation, or his appearances at global conferences, Gene Kim continues to bring fresh and thought-provoking perspectives to the world of DevOps and IT operations. His work continues to challenge many of the traditional practices that often hinder successful technological management and implementation. By inspiring business and IT leaders to push further and further into the realm of digital transformation and DevOps, Kim is enabling the creation of organizations that are more agile, secure and efficient.