Why Your Platform Engineering Isn’t Scaling and how to fix it

Over the past year, platform engineering has become a buzzword, leading some to lose sight of its true purpose: delivering measurable business value beyond Day One. To thrive, platform engineering demands clear goals, scalable frameworks, and an unwavering focus on long-term sustainability.

Day Two: Where the Magic Happens

Many organizations stumble by focusing solely on day one: the initial setup and delivery of value to customers. While day one is crucial for establishing systems and processes, day two—when systems must be maintained, scaled, and secured—is where the real challenges emerge.

Without clear goals, teams can get lost in experimentation and forget to plan for operational complexities. Establishing these goals early and structuring teams to meet them is vital to avoid technical debt and inefficiencies. This means designing platforms with scalability, safety, and speed in mind from the outset.

A key principle is composability. By creating reusable workflows and components, organizations can streamline operations and avoid reinventing the wheel. Tools like SBOMs (Software Bills of Materials), which catalog application components, are indispensable for ensuring security and efficiency across distributed teams.

The challenge isn’t just about building fast but rather innovatively, using modular, adaptable systems that can grow with the organization.

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The Critical Role of Platform Orchestration

Platforms are often divided into three layers: the application layer (UI/portal), the platform orchestration layer (managing APIs and lifecycle operations), and the infrastructure layer (cloud services, Terraform, Pulumi, etc.). While the application layer often receives the spotlight, the platform orchestration layer is where the magic happens, particularly on day two and beyond.

This middle layer ensures seamless management of updates, security fixes, and system upgrades. Without it, organizations end up with fragmented systems, where each application must be maintained individually—a costly and time-intensive process. By thoughtfully designing APIs and automating processes, teams can maintain a unified platform that allows for efficient, large-scale rollouts.

In my experience at Syntasso, we’ve found that focusing on this orchestration layer can transform a platform from a collection of disconnected tools into a cohesive, scalable framework. It enables teams to operate with agility, adapting to changing security requirements and business needs without sacrificing efficiency.

Streamlining Collaboration Across Teams

Cross-functional collaboration is one of the most significant hurdles for distributed organizations. Misaligned teams can lead to confusion, inefficiency, and missed opportunities. The solution lies in establishing clear APIs for collaboration—not just in technology but also in human workflows. Defining roles, responsibilities, and interfaces makes it easier for teams to interact, whether they’re working on design, development, or deployment.

Leaders play a crucial role in this process by providing guidelines and empowering teams to address challenges directly. Listening to the people doing the work and addressing their pain points with scalable solutions ensures alignment and fosters innovation.

Gregor Hohpe’s “architect elevator” metaphor offers valuable insight into this dynamic. Just as technical APIs enable systems to communicate, effective leaders tailor their communication for different levels of the organization. Whether discussing cost savings and risk reduction with executives or CI/CD processes with engineers, adapting the message ensures that everyone understands their role in the bigger picture.

Balancing Abstractions and Third-Party Dependencies

One of the most essential skills in platform engineering is understanding when and how to abstract systems. Effective abstractions help make applications more self-sustained and adaptable to diverse environments, eliminating the need to keep reinventing the wheel for every new scenario.
 
By decoupling platforms from third-party APIs, these abstractions protect organizations from disruptions caused by external changes. At the build-time level, modern tools enable teams to create these abstractions efficiently, fostering reusability without over-complicating their systems.

However, over-abstraction can create its own problems. Teams sometimes spend months engineering bulletproof systems only to discover unforeseen failures. Striking a balance is key: embrace third-party tools where appropriate, but ensure that abstractions provide flexibility without unnecessary complexity.

This principle mirrors a common-sense approach in everyday life: you don’t bake your own bread or churn your own butter for a sandwich—you rely on third parties for those components. Similarly, using trusted third-party tools can save time and resources as long as the proper safeguards are in place.

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Accessibility and Technical Debt: The Hidden Challenges

Two often-overlooked aspects of platform engineering are accessibility and technical debt. Both can limit the success of even the most well-engineered systems.

Accessibility must be a core consideration, ensuring that platforms work for diverse audiences. Something as simple as designing a UI that assumes users read left-to-right can alienate users in cultures where that isn’t the case. Inclusive design isn’t just ethical; it’s essential for reaching a global audience.

Meanwhile, technical debt can stifle innovation and hide critical vulnerabilities. Organizations must prioritize addressing technical debt early, reducing risk, and ensuring long-term sustainability. This requires not just technical fixes but also a cultural shift toward continuous improvement and proactive risk management.

The road to success isn’t without challenges. However, with the right frameworks, principles, and mindset, platform engineering becomes more than a technical discipline—it becomes the engine that drives organizational success.

In 2024, Qt Group commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct market research in order to understand the benefits, maturity, and challenges of platform engineering in the embedded software space.

Access the Paper Here!