Position: SIS Development Manager transitioning to new role as Assistant Technical Director, Oracle PeopleSoft
Time spent in OIT: 14 years
Devon Nance did not initially set out to work in higher education. As a developer for Boston Market Rotisserie Chicken and the City of Denver, Co., he applied for a job at Duke in 2011.Fourteen years later, he leads the team responsible for keeping DukeHub running for every student, faculty member, and advisor on campus.
What he does for OIT
Devon was recently promoted to a new role - assistant technical director of Oracle PeopleSoft — the enterprise resource planning (ERP) software underlying DukeHub. His team works on taking the generic ERP software and tailoring it to Duke’s specific needs alongside a small team of developers. In his former role as the SIS Development Manager, he led the team responsible for maintaining and customizing the tool. Now he manages both the development and application administration teams.
That means Devon and his team must continually adapt. There are constant updates, refinements, and enhancements. Federal financial aid rules change. Academic policies shift. Oracle releases updates that must be carefully integrated without breaking Duke’s custom work.
“We’re always applying updates,” he explained. “And then those updates will interfere with customizations that we’ve made. We’ve got to get those retrofitted, reintegrated.”
Devon oversees a team of “four and a half developers,” he joked, since he still codes alongside managing the team. Every morning at 9 a.m., they meet for a virtual stand-up to review progress.
Their workload runs counter to the academic calendar. In the summer months, the team works to maintain and update DukeHub to minimize disruption. During registration, grading, and decision release periods, the priority is stability and making sure it all runs smoothly.
“We try really hard to leave the system alone and let it do its thing,” he said.
What he enjoys about his work
For Devon, the most meaningful part of his job is the impact.
“I really feel strongly about helping with our overall mission by managing our student information system as efficiently as possible,” he said. “It’s pretty central to what the university does.”
He’s especially proud of how DukeHub has evolved since he arrived. When he started, the interface was far less modern and user-friendly compared to the polished version faculty and students use today.
That same user-focused mindset shapes how he leads his team. As a manager, he emphasizes listening before solving.
“People come to us with problems. Our job is to find solutions,” he said. “I want people to think of me as being helpful… somebody who has sat down and really thought through what it is being asked and has come up with solutions that work.”
If he could offer advice to someone new joining the team, it would be simple: “Be patient and listen.”
Where the day takes shape
Because his team works fully remotely, Devon’s mornings begin at home. The first task every day is logging into VPN (virtual private network that allows users to securely access Duke systems remotely), something he doesn’t take for granted. For Devon, VPN isn’t just a technicality. As a remote team for nearly six years, it’s made their work a lot more flexible.
Starting at 9 a.m., Devon has a morning stand-up meeting. It’s a quick virtual check-in where each of the five team members runs through what they did the day before and what they’re planning to do today.
After the morning stand-up meeting the rest of the day is largely heads-down. The team is focused on coding, reviewing requirements, coordinating with the SIS office, and preparing updates. Productivity is measured not by screen time, but by progress.
“As far as what we’re ‘graded’ on, it’s not whether you’re sitting in front of that screen—it’s whether you’re producing,” he said.
Where work ends
Outside of OIT, Devon’s routine is steady and active. He runs three to four times a week and incorporates strength training after a past injury.
He and his wife Glynis share their home with two rescue dogs: Floki, a husky/foxhound mix, and Roxy, a retired Irish racing greyhound who came all the way from Ireland, originally named Rocket—though Devon and Glynis felt the name didn't quite suit her.
“A walk is necessary every single day,” he said. Weekend walks are longer and often take them to local parks or trails, like Umstead Park or the American Tobacco Trail.
Devon also keeps a puzzle table upstairs in his home dedicated entirely to jigsaw puzzles. “I always have a puzzle going,” he said, recently completing an Empire Strikes Back design.
Sports are another constant. A devoted Denver Broncos fan, he joked, “I turned down a chance to be the starting quarterback for the Denver Broncos just to work here.” He and his wife also follow Duke basketball, the Kansas City Royals, and professional soccer.
Beyond sports, the arts also hold a place in their routine. Each year, they make it a goal to watch all ten Academy Award Best Picture nominees before the Oscars ceremony. "There are always ten," he noted, "and sometimes it's kind of a challenge to get them" — some aren't easily streamed and may no longer be in theaters. Once the nominations drop, they start checking them off.
Family remains central. His daughter Sydney attends University of North Carolina, Charlotte, and weekend trips down to go see her often include a basketball game.
And even with a disciplined running routine, some habits remain delightfully unchanged.
“I have never grown out of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches,” he admitted. “I think anybody who knew me would be disappointed if you put anything else other than that.”