Looking back: a tour of blog posts

We’re embarking on an expedition through the archives of Giant Swarm’s blog. 

We're dusting off our virtual time machines and donning our trusty Sherlock hats (aka looking at old links 😀) to decode the mysteries hidden within our old blog posts. But hold on, this isn't a mere nostalgia trip; we're on a quest to uncover nuggets of wisdom and bring back some forgotten treasures. In a world that hurtles forward at lightning speed, it's all too easy to forget the paths we've walked. As we wander down memory lane, we'll catch glimpses of our growth and witness the winds of change that have shaped our journey. 

Where we started: the first three blog posts

From growing the Swarm to productivity hacks and stacks and the early days of onsite… 

Our journey began in 2014, when we took our first steps into the blogosphere at Giant Swarm. The initial words on the Giant Swarm blog were, “We had just started talking about what Giant Swarm was supposed to be...” A humble beginning that posed questions we still love exploring today.

“In the early days, convincing anyone at Giant Swarm to write a blog post was quite a challenge. Our team was deeply immersed in crafting groundbreaking innovations, leaving little time for blogging. As the one responsible for content, I had to tap into my creativity to inspire and engage our brilliant minds in sharing their insights.”
	Puja Abbassi VP Product

Back when we were still in the process of building, well, everything. These early posts explored topics like new team members from Symfony (Shoutout Dennis!) and sharing honest insights on how we got sh*t done. It’s interesting to see how much has changed, but maybe it’s more interesting to see how much hasn’t changed. Our very first post introducing Dennis encapsulates our people-first approach, putting our people in the spotlight and asking the tough questions, like “Kölsch/Alt/Pils?” One noteworthy launch during this period was our beloved onsites, which have since grown to be bigger, grander, sometimes remote (thanks, COVID) and more team-oriented. 

Where we are now: a tour of some of our latest blog posts

From getting to know our community and giving our knowledge back to the community to doing things differently, the Giant Swarm way… 

Fast forward to today, and our blog serves as a true reflection of Giant Swarm's essence — it's a blend of everything we hold dear. We're passionate about technology, deeply appreciate the individuals who shape it, and aren't afraid to delve into the nerdy aspects of both.

From our 8 on K8s adventures in the community where we explore eight questions with endless answers to deep dives into tech topics like VMWare, Arm, developer platforms, and security, our blog encapsulates our ever-expanding expertise and interests. While we continue to share how-to guides, it's often the simpler ones that capture the most interest, confirming that knowledge sharing should remain at the heart of our mission. 

Speaking of missions, we are Giant Swarm, and Giant Swarm is us — it's our people who breathe life into it. Therefore, our blog is a true reflection of our team. Almost all of our blog posts (with just a few exceptions from our guest writers) are crafted by our passionate Giant Swarm colleagues on a voluntary basis. We believe that when people write about what truly matters to them, whether it's our journey into a four-day workweek with Project 32 or our exploration of Prometheus and its sharding capabilities, the result is genuinely interesting and valuable content. At Giant Swarm, our blog is more than just words on a page; it's a reflection of our collective passion and dedication.

Where we’re going: plans for 2024

We’re just as excited as you are.

We usually kick off the year with a look into our crystal ball for our annual cloud native predictions. Our resident psychic and Co-Founder, Oliver, writes the predictions; however, for 2024, he crowdsourced some of them at our Christmas installment of Giant Swarm & Friends, which you can expect to read here soon. In addition, our blog will be getting a refresher to match our awesome new website. 

In terms of what’s to come on the blog, that will be decided by the creativity and wisdom of our wonderful colleagues, and no doubt we’ll gather around here this time next year and marvel at how far we’ve come. 

“As we've journeyed through the years, the Giant Swarm blog has been a reflection of our company's growth and transformation. It's not just a collection of words; it's a chronicle of our collective wisdom and a testament to our adaptability in a fast-paced tech world.”
	Oliver Thylmann Co-Founder and CCO