Platform engineering is all about product | Gal Bashan at LeadDev London 2023

Discover how platform engineering is all about product, not just technology, and learn how to create effective teams that enable developers and remove complexity, with a focus on problem-solving, iteration, and measuring success.

Key takeaways
  • Platform engineering is about product, not just technology.
  • Organizations need a problem-first mindset to solve the right problems.
  • The goal of a platform engineering organization is enablement, not just technology.
  • To be effective, platform engineering teams need good problem validation and solution validation, and to iterate.
  • It’s essential to identify the problems to be solved and involve the developers in the solution.
  • A product manager can be very helpful in platforms engineering, but it’s not always necessary.
  • The term “platform engineering” is often misunderstood, and it’s not about building a “cluster” story.
  • Effective platform engineering teams can be created by merging dev and ops organizations.
  • Platform engineering teams should enable the rest of the developers and remove unnecessary complexity.
  • It’s essential to measure platform engineering against usage and adoption metrics.
  • Developer experience is key to platform engineering success.
  • Good engineering leaders are focused on product, not just technology.
  • IDP (Internal Developer Platform) should be a platform that enables other developers, not just serve the needs of a few.
  • It’s essential to make sure that the solutions being built are actually valuable to the developers and the organization.
  • Product management is important in platform engineering, and it’s not just about having a product manager.