Measuring Developer Experience and Improving it through Platform Engineering (feat. Ajay Chankramath)
Software Development, Finance and AI16 Huhti 2024

Measuring Developer Experience and Improving it through Platform Engineering (feat. Ajay Chankramath)

Ajay Chankramath⁠, Head of Platform Engineering at ⁠ThoughtWorks⁠, discusses measuring and improving developer experience through platform engineering. Platform engineering is the abstracted set of tools, principles, and techniques that make developers' lives easier and enable DevOps. It focuses on improving developer productivity and reducing friction in the software development process. The key to successful platform engineering is adopting a product management mindset and prioritizing capabilities based on their value. Platform engineering can benefit organizations of all sizes, but the scope and implementation may vary. Internal developer platforms and managed platform engineering services are emerging as options for startups and smaller organizations. Platform engineering is the evolution of software development and delivery. It is not a passing fad or a replacement for DevOps, but rather a cultural paradigm that brings together tools, techniques, and processes. Platform engineering aims to simplify and automate the development process, improve compliance gating, and provide internal developer portals for self-service. It also involves the use of generative AI to enhance operational productivity and enable proactive issue detection. While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to platform engineering, it is important for organizations to invest in platforms that align with their specific requirements and skill sets.

Takeaways

  • Platform engineering aims to improve developer productivity and reduce friction in the software development process.
  • Adopting a product management mindset and prioritizing capabilities based on their value is crucial for successful platform engineering.
  • Platform engineering can benefit organizations of all sizes, but the scope and implementation may vary.
  • Internal developer platforms and managed platform engineering services are emerging as options for startups and smaller organizations. Platform engineering is the evolution of software development and delivery.
  • It is not a passing fad or a replacement for DevOps, but rather a cultural paradigm that brings together tools, techniques, and processes.
  • Platform engineering aims to simplify and automate the development process, improve compliance gating, and provide internal developer portals for self-service.
  • Generative AI can be used to enhance operational productivity and enable proactive issue detection.
  • There is no one-size-fits-all approach to platform engineering, and organizations should invest in platforms that align with their specific requirements and skill sets.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Ajay Chankramath and ThoughtWorks

03:08 Defining Platform Engineering and its Importance

07:48 The Role of Product Management in Platform Engineering

10:21 The Genesis of Platform Engineering and the Importance of Value Modeling

13:22 Platform Engineering for Organizations of All Sizes

22:16 Breaking Down Platform Engineering into Five Planes

25:41 The Importance of Observability in Platform Engineering

29:19 The Role of Orchestrators in Platform Engineering

33:26 The Impact of Platform Engineering on Developers' Daily Work

35:56 The Importance of Compliance Gating

36:47 Internal Developer Portals

38:17 Abstraction with Terraform and Other Tools

49:04 The Potential of Generative AI

55:53 Coexistence of Self-Serve Portals and Conversational UIs

01:06:25 Platform Engineering as an Evolution of Software Development

Jaksot(411)

Mac Users: Is it taking a little too much time to copy videos from your Photos App to your local directory?

Mac Users: Is it taking a little too much time to copy videos from your Photos App to your local directory?

Join the club :) It takes a lot of time to make a copy of a video file (even small ones) and clearly, there's an Apple bug that they are yet to identify/fix. I've an easy solution. Manage your projects on https://snowpal.com!

26 Touko 20212min

A JavaScript Event Handling issue that took us a few hours to get to the bottom of

A JavaScript Event Handling issue that took us a few hours to get to the bottom of

We added support to allow inline edits on our cards (Kanban and others) recently and ran into an issue during implementation that turned out to be related to Event Handling.

22 Touko 20212min

If you are an engineer who doesn't particularly enjoy writing (or reading) documents, try this!

If you are an engineer who doesn't particularly enjoy writing (or reading) documents, try this!

I don't have drawing skills but am pictorial in my thinking. Given that, I've relied on a variety of tools over the years to keep myself productive. Manage your projects on https://snowpal.com!

18 Touko 20211min

Facebook AD Account: Why our AD account was locked momentarily.

Facebook AD Account: Why our AD account was locked momentarily.

If one of the things you do is create campaigns on Social Media platforms, my recent experience may resonate with you. Keep this in mind! Manage your projects on https://snowpal.com!

7 Touko 20219min

When implementing Apple Sign In on your web application, keep this in mind

When implementing Apple Sign In on your web application, keep this in mind

It is likely you support more than one domain and/or sub-domain for your web application. And if that were to be the case and you are implementing support for Apple Sign In, there's at least one more thing you want to keep in mind. Manage your projects on https://snowpal.com!

3 Touko 20211min

Wondering what that one feature is which will make all the difference?

Wondering what that one feature is which will make all the difference?

Well, how we wish we all knew that! I've seen that despite all the research and competitive analysis you may want to (and have to) do, the age old adage that more is better might still hold good.

29 Huhti 20211min

Do more of what think you do not like. Sounds weird?

Do more of what think you do not like. Sounds weird?

When we like something, we will naturally find a way to do more of that (as we should). When we do not like something, we tend to shy away from it. Also, natural, but is there another way to go about it?   Manage Projects on https://snowpal.com!

28 Huhti 20211min

Are you spending a little too much time finding the "right" technology?

Are you spending a little too much time finding the "right" technology?

When you are building a new app, or an API layer, and you find yourself in a position (or a role) where you are having to make a decision on the "best" choice of technology, it can be a tad overwhelming. Here's one way to do it.   Manage Projects on https://snowpal.com!

27 Huhti 20211min