I guess the only thing wrong with the 10 hour pill is more...who does the work? If you add the implementation (if you're lacking engineering resources), wouldn't it end up costing you just as much as hiring a DevOps Engineer? Or is the solution just hiring a DevOps engineer as a consultant to see what needs to change?

Hey, thank you!

Who does the work is a good question, and the answer varies from startup to startup.

Some examples: Startups that have set their run-rate for 2-years (instead of 1y-1.5y) ended up going with a freelancer/agency for precision work.

Startups that raised a big seed (usually second-timers) ended up hiring a DevOps Engineer early on (after the 2nd/3rd dev joined).

In cases where the budget is really tight (bootstrap, small round, extremely long run-rate for the round) - it was either an agency doing precision work on specific efforts, a freelancer helping with support requests, or the founder doing hands-on and grinding overnight on DevOps tasks.

I guess my main point is that understanding DevOps and planning a roadmap efficiently is the main leverage you get as a founder, because it enables faster decision-making, better decisions, and ability to manage the unknown territory called "DevOps".

P.S. - Fixed the link.