About the Alliance
Improving the work lives of those keeping Alliance platforms running for their audience.
The Alliance is launching summer of 2027 as a Benefit Corporation with a mission.
- 2026The AI revolution of app platforms reaches critical mass
By this point, the gap in the DevOps market is well established and the need for DevOps for App Platforms (DOAP) is clear. Each platform is working independently to solve its problems, but no central effort exists.
- Q4 2026The Alliance is announced
The Alliance idea is formed by platform experts feeling the pain, and the site and survey go live.
- Q1 2027The first report
The industry report, the rubric published with it, and the first benchmark.
- Summer 2027The Alliance Day 1
Communities are formed. Founding platforms are announced, along with steering committees and working groups, and certifications are on the horizon.
The DOAP Alliance exists to improve the working lives of the professionals responsible for DevOps on Application Platforms (DOAP) — to support the builders and admins/maintainers of those platforms in a streamlined way, to make those professionals’ lives easier, and to make the companies they support more effective and efficient.
It is about relationships. We foster professional relationships and give practitioners the room to flourish in their careers.
- 01Training
A curriculum across nine domains, platform-neutral at the core and platform-specific where it matters.
- 02Certification
A platform-specific certification (e.g. DOAP-AT, DOAP-MON) for each Alliance platform, coordinated by a platform expert panel.
- 03Community
A place for the person who is “the Airtable person”, or the Notion person, or the Supabase person, and has never met another one.
- 04Career growth
The ultimate goal is to help our members be more successful in their careers and achieve DevOps zen through our community, training and certification.
What a benefit corporation is
A benefit corporation is a for-profit company whose charter names a public benefit alongside profit and obliges its directors to weigh it. It reports on that benefit publicly, every year. It is a legal definition where we put our mission first as our top priority.
By organizing as a benefit corporation, we strive to gain the trust and confidence of our members and the ecosystem at large.
The DOAP Alliance is currently pre-formation. The official charter will be published here once filed.
- §1Earning powerCompensation by certification status and maturity band, year over year.
- §2EffectivenessMovement of members’ DOAP Scores between editions.
- §3RecognitionPractitioners certified; volunteers seated; badges issued.
- §4RelationshipsActive community members; event attendance.
- §5CompaniesIncident and recovery outcomes of member organizations against the benchmark.
Structured governance. Run by committees, led by experts.
We are currently accepting candidates for all our bodies. If you have run a community, written certification exams or training, or are an expert on a platform, we want to talk.
Every body has a designated lead: a Chair for the Board and committees, a Lead for platform bodies. The lead runs the meetings, sets and drives the agenda, owns the deliverables, and answers to the body one level up. Every position has a defined lifetime and renews annually.
People who have built bodies like this before. Advises the Board, and appoints it. Sits on nothing else.
Seats openFinal decision on everything: mission, budget, opening platforms, approving standards. Appointed by the External Advisory Board. Seated before launch.
Seats openOwns the exam framework, scoring, integrity and renewal. Approves platform question banks; writes none itself.
Seats openModeration, code-of-conduct first response, the editorial calendar, events programming. Where a new volunteer starts.
Seats openEverything specific to one platform. Reports to the Board.
Seats openThe deep experts. Drafts platform-specific questions and scoring for the Committee to approve.
Seats openContent and moderation within the platform’s community.
Seats openServing on a body
- Unpaid and part-time. Annual terms, renewable to three years (five on the Board).
- Dues waived for the term. Free access to all events during it. A badge on the site and at events.
- The Founding Cohort — anyone seated on a first body — keeps event access after their term: one year served earns three, two earns five, three earns ten.
- Removal for non-performance or a code-of-conduct breach, by the body one level up.
How a platform opens
Once we receive a minimum of twenty (20) committed members for a platform, we select its Platform Steering Committee and working groups. When the Board approves the platform and its committees, the platform community launches and the certification process begins.
Code of conduct →I have lived the highs and lows of Platform DevOps and love to connect with my fellow experts.
As founder of Openside, I have launched communities (BuiltOnAir), products (On2Air) and produced hundreds of live podcasts, all to connect the community of like-minded professionals around a specific platform.
After 20+ years in traditional software application development and DevOps, when I found the power of App Platforms (Airtable in my case), I was hooked: no more weekend migrations and server crashes. But over the years, I’ve learned all the new ways to get into trouble on these platforms, and recognized the need for The DOAP Alliance. I’ve spoken with many leaders in the space who also see this gap, and it’s now time for us to take control of our future.
- Built
- InAir Studio (co-founder). Openside, home of BuiltOnAir, On2Air and Baseout (coming soon).
- Track record
- Proven CEO (Eli Healthcare) and founder (InAir) of multiple multi-million-dollar companies. Previously Venture Partner at Cross Creek Advisors.
- Studied
- MSc Computer Science, Cal State San Marcos. BA Economics and MBA, BYU.
- Based
- Provo, Utah
All boards are being seated now. We want to talk to you.
Get involved- Seats openExternal Advisory Board
People who have built bodies like this before. Advises the Board and appoints it; sits on nothing else.
I would serve here → - Five seatsDOAP Board
The final decision on everything: mission, budget, which platform opens, the standard.
I would serve here →
Operated by Openside under contract: infrastructure, website, marketing, operations. Openside does not own the Alliance.
We are ready to launch. We just need you as a Founding Member.
We are building the foundation for a successful Alliance and talking to every party willing to meet with us. With your commitment today, we will be even closer to launching. Join our mission, and we will be committed to helping your career succeed.
- Sep 2026 · nowFounding members join
Gathering initial interest: your name on the join form, and the first survey open, for every platform.
- Q1 2027Survey’s open
The industry report, the rubric published with it, and the first benchmark.
- Summer 2027The Alliance forms
Three platforms at twenty, steering committees seated, the benefit corporation filed.
- AfterCertification opens
The exam follows the nine domains the survey measures.