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During your time at Lloyds Bank as an SRE from December 2019 to January 2022, what best practice guidelines did you create for DevOps repos, and how did these guidelines improve team efficiency and code quality?
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At Lloyds Bank, from December 2019 to January 2022, I recognized the need for clear and consistent guidelines for our DevOps repositories. As the number of repos grew, it became increasingly important to ensure that everyone was following the same best practices. We needed consistency. The best practice guidelines were more geared towards Azure repos, as we were migrating to Azure.The first thing I did was to define a standard repository structure. This included guidelines for naming conventions, directory layout, and file organization. I also created templates for common files, such as READMEs, LICENSEs, and CONTRIBUTINGs. These best practice guides were used with every Azure repo.I then created guidelines for version control. This included rules for branching, merging, and tagging. I also encouraged the use of pull requests for all code changes. This would allow colleagues to peer review and make suggestions for any code that has been implemented. Peer review ensures there is a lower likelihood of mistakes.I also established guidelines for CI/CD. This included recommendations for using Azure DevOps Pipelines to automate builds, tests, and deployments. I also created templates for common pipeline configurations. CI/CD pipelines allow faster roll outs of the code as well as improving and making consistent with the automation. Having it fully automated is a big win. I also created guidelines for security. This included recommendations for storing secrets, managing access control, and performing security scans. The best way to manage security is to have an overview of what is happening and so security scans help a lot with this. Also, there should be regular internal training for the developers to ensure security is at the forefront of their minds.These guidelines had a significant impact on team efficiency and code quality. Developers were able to get up to speed on new projects more quickly. Code was more consistent and easier to maintain. The risk of errors and security vulnerabilities was reduced. Code quality also means that you are delivering more value to the client or stakeholder.  At Lloyds Bank, from December 2019 to January 2022, I created best practice guidelines for DevOps repos, which included a standard repository structure, version control rules, CI/CD recommendations using Azure DevOps Pipelines, and security guidelines. These guidelines improved team efficiency, code quality, and reduced the risk of errors and security vulnerabilities.