The Exact Roadmap for Building Platform Engineering — Is There Such a Thing?

Building an internal developer platform, known as Platform Engineering, is a complex task that requires collaboration between different teams, diverse technological solutions, and strategic planning. But is there an exact roadmap for building Platform Engineering?

Is there one correct way to build the platform, or is it a process that should be tailored to each organization’s needs?

This article will provide insights into how to build a successful Platform Engineering platform, tailored to organizational needs, with a focus on key stages, without reinventing the wheel.

1. Understanding the Need — What is Platform Engineering?

Before diving into building the roadmap, it’s essential to understand the goal of Platform Engineering. This is a system or service that allows development teams to work independently, efficiently, and in a more organized manner, while utilizing the organization’s tools and resources optimally.

The platform provides the infrastructure and tools for developers, such as:

• Managing infrastructure as code (IaC).
• Automated tools for managing deployment and CI/CD.
• A unified user experience for managing internal services and processes.
• Automation of routine tasks, such as user management, development environments, and troubleshooting.

2. First Step — Shaping the Vision and Goals of the Platform

The first and most critical step in building the platform is defining its vision and goals. What value is the platform expected to bring to the organization? How will the platform serve the needs of developers and internal teams?

This is a pivotal stage, as every technical and structural decision going forward will be based on these goals. For example:

• Is the goal to streamline the development process?
• Is the platform meant to give developers full control over infrastructure without affecting the organization’s critical systems?
• Is the platform aimed at ensuring compliance for organizations with stringent regulations?

3. Selecting the Right Technologies and Tools

Once the goals and vision for the platform are defined, the next step is to choose the tools and technologies that will enable you to achieve these goals efficiently.

Critical technology decisions include:

• IaC (Infrastructure as Code) — How will you manage infrastructure automatically? Will you use Terraform, CloudFormation, or other tools?
• CI/CD — Which automation tool will manage your deployment pipelines? Jenkins, GitLab, CircleCI, or another tool?
• Monitoring and Logging — How will you track performance and troubleshoot issues? Maybe Grafana, Prometheus, or Splunk.
• Additional Tools — You may also need tools for container management (Docker, Kubernetes) and cloud solutions (AWS, GCP, Azure).

The right choice depends not only on the technology itself but also on how it integrates with existing organizational systems and its ability to scale and evolve over time.

4. Minimum Viable Product (MVP) — Start Small and Scale Up

The next stage in building the platform is understanding that you don’t need to build the entire platform at once. The recommended approach is to start with a minimal version that provides the most critical features.

For example, you might begin with a simple solution for managing development environments and integrating with CI/CD tools, gradually adding features like deployment automation or integration with infrastructure management tools.

The goal is to launch a platform that delivers immediate value, so you can gather feedback and make quick improvements.

5. Platform Expansion — Adding Features and Upgrades

After launching the MVP, the next step is to expand the platform with additional features that align with the needs of internal teams. This expansion might include:

• Integrations with other tools.
• Automation of additional tasks.
• Upgrades to handle faster requests, more stability, and better security.

This phase also requires maintenance of the platform: updating tools, handling bugs, performing technological upgrades, and coordinating between development teams and DevOps.

6. Review and Optimization — Evaluate and Improve

After each stage of building the platform, it’s crucial to monitor its performance and assess its impact on the organization. Is the platform helping developers work more independently? Has the process become more efficient? Is infrastructure being managed more automatically and securely?

In conclusion, every change made must be evaluated and adjusted. The platform should not be built and then left to stagnate; rather, it should be a continuous process of improvement and enhancement.

💡 In Conclusion — Every Organization is Different, But There is a Recipe for Success

There is no single, precise roadmap for building a Platform Engineering platform, but there are guiding principles that can ensure success. The key is understanding the needs of the organization, starting with a minimal version tailored to those needs, adding features gradually, and continuously improving the platform to match modern requirements.

The central principle is that the platform should adapt to the needs of the teams — not the other way around.

🤙 Interested in building the exact roadmap for your organization? Contact me for a free consultation session: https://Senora.dev