Closing the Gap Between Dev and Ops with Observability-Driven Feature Management

/ Application Development, DevOps, Dynatrace Perform 2026, Events, Observability, Platform Engineering
Closing the Gap Between Dev and Ops with Observability-Driven Feature Management

The push to ship code faster has hit a bottleneck: the “observability gap.” While developers are increasingly using feature flags to decouple deployments from releases, they often lack real-time insight into how those specific features impact the broader system.

At the Dynatrace Perform 2026 conference, the conversation shifted from traditional IT operations to a developer-first mindset. Central to this evolution is Dynatrace’s recent acquisition of DevCycle, a feature management platform. I sat down with Michael Beemer (Product Manager at Dynatrace) and Andrew Norris (Principal Product Manager and former CEO of DevCycle) to discuss how unifying feature flags with deep observability is the next step in de-risking the SDLC.

Separating Deployment from Release

The core value of feature flagging is the ability to push code to production without immediately “releasing” it to all users. This allows for granular control and testing in a live environment, which is what Norris calls “safety factor increases.”

“Feature flags at their core are about separating your deployments from releases. You can ship to production, understand what impact it’s having live in front of users… and get the important context that you just can’t get in a lab.” — Andrew Norris, Principal Product Manager, Dynatrace

For developers, this means the ability to move toward hourly deployments. While recent research shows 24% of developers want to ship code hourly, only 8% are currently able to do so. Bridging that gap requires the confidence that a new code path won’t bring down the system.

Eliminating the “Observability Gap”

Feature management and observability have previously lived in silos. A developer might toggle a flag, but the SRE team seeing a spike in latency might not immediately connect it to that specific change. By integrating DevCycle into the Dynatrace platform, teams can now see “feature-level observability.”

Michael highlighted that while flags add a layer of complexity, essentially creating multiple code paths within a single binary, observability mitigates that risk.

“We’re moving beyond observability as just passively watching system behavior. We want to be an active participant. Feature flags are the ideal way to tap into that, allowing the platform to tune itself based on what’s important to the business.” — Michael Beemer, Product Manager, Dynatrace

AI as an Unlock for Agentic Development

As we enter the era of agentic development, where AI models are generating and even committing code, the risk profile changes. Non-deterministic code requires even more rigorous safety nets. Norris noted that feature flags are becoming a primary tool for testing which AI models or prompts perform best for specific user groups, allowing for safe experimentation with generative features.

The Takeaway for Developers

The integration of feature management into a unified observability platform signals a shift in how we view the “Day 2” operations of a feature. It is no longer enough to know the system is “up”; you need to know if the specific feature you just toggled is driving the business metrics (e.g., subscription signups or engagement) that you intended.

Why this matters now:

  • Reduced Technical Debt: Platforms like DevCycle track the lifecycle of a flag, alerting teams when it’s time to clean up code.
  • Business Impact: Moving from technical metrics (latency/errors) to business impact (A/B testing/conversions) within the same view.
  • Frictionless Onboarding: With OpenTelemetry support and “MCP-first” (Model Context Protocol) onboarding, the barrier to entry for developers is lower than ever.

Looking Ahead

A year from now, the goal is a “360-degree view” of a feature, from the moment the first line of code is written in a VS Code IDE to the moment it is rolled out (or rolled back) based on real-time business and system telemetry.

Watch the AppDevANGLE podcast with Dynatrace’s Michael Beemer and Andrew Norris to hear how this integration closes the loop between development and operations. This provides a practical blueprint for engineering teams navigating the shift toward high-velocity, reliable software delivery.

Author

  • Paul Nashawaty

    Paul Nashawaty, Practice Leader and Lead Principal Analyst, specializes in application modernization across build, release and operations. With a wealth of expertise in digital transformation initiatives spanning front-end and back-end systems, he also possesses comprehensive knowledge of the underlying infrastructure ecosystem crucial for supporting modernization endeavors. With over 25 years of experience, Paul has a proven track record in implementing effective go-to-market strategies, including the identification of new market channels, the growth and cultivation of partner ecosystems, and the successful execution of strategic plans resulting in positive business outcomes for his clients.

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