Renzo Petri, IT Director – Architecture, DevOps, Quality, Automation and IT Office at Natura &Co
Renzo Petri, IT Director – Architecture, DevOps, Quality, Automation and IT Office at Natura &Co
The world of software development is undergoing rapid change. Speed, agility and reliability are no longer just buzzwords; they are the cornerstones of success in today’s competitive digital environment. To thrive in this environment, organizations must adopt new infrastructure and operating methods. This is where platform engineering comes in as a game changer, accelerating DevOps culture and helping developers, SREs, and infrastructure teams.
DevOps and platform engineering are valuable methods for helping organizations improve their software development processes. But it is necessary to understand the differences between these two methods:
Development and operation Emphasis on collaboration and communication between development and operations teams. Its purpose is to break down silos and streamline the software delivery process. Organizations that adopt DevOps report a 20-40% increase in software versions, a reduction in change failure rates, and a 10% improvement in time to market.
Platform engineering Focused on creating a self-service platform that provides developers with the tools and resources needed to build and deploy applications without relying on operations teams, and helps increase productivity and maximize productivity with a wealth of tools for SREs and operations teams Reduce cognitive load significantly. Over 80% of organizations will adopt platform engineering within the next three years.
Platform engineering and DevOps are not just trends; They represent a fundamental shift in the way software is developed, delivered, and operated. These rules are critical for organizations that want to remain competitive in the digital age. The combination of platform engineering and DevOps provides many benefits, including:
Improve developer productivity: Developers can focus on building functionality instead of wasting time on manual tasks or infrastructure management.
Faster time to market: Applications can be released faster, allowing organizations to take advantage of market opportunities.
Improve quality and reliability: Standardized tools and automated processes reduce errors and ensure consistent application behavior.
Enhanced scalability and efficiency: Platform engineering allows resources and infrastructure to be easily scaled based on demand.
Increased adoption of cloud-native technologies: Cloud platforms offer a range of advantages, including scalability, flexibility and cost-effectiveness. Platform engineering and DevOps are key drivers of cloud adoption.
Focus on automation and artificial intelligence: AI-driven tools can automate many mundane tasks, freeing up developers and operations teams to work on more strategic work.
Emphasis on security and compliance: Organizations need to ensure that their platform engineering and DevOps practices comply with all relevant security and regulatory requirements.
By embracing platform engineering and DevOps and staying ahead of these trends, organizations can succeed in the evolving digital environment.
“Platform engineering and DevOps are not just trends; they are trends.” They are fundamental shifts in the way software is developed, delivered and operated.
Why platform engineering matters
Platform engineering offers many benefits to developers, SREs, and infrastructure teams because it is a fundamental shift in how infrastructure and operations are managed and how developers deliver software with less cognitive load. Here are some reasons why platform engineering is critical for developers, SREs, and infrastructure teams:
Improve efficiency: Automating routine tasks reduces manual work and frees up valuable time for strategy work.
Improve scalability and agility: The platform can be easily expanded to accommodate the growth and changing needs of developers.
Reduce downtime: Standardized and automated processes reduce errors and increase infrastructure reliability.
Greater visibility and control: Comprehensive monitoring and alerting systems provide insights into system health and performance.
Strengthen collaboration: Shared platform facilitates collaboration between developers and SRE/infrastructure teams.
Infrastructure complexity continues to increase: Cloud-based architectures, microservices, and containerization make infrastructure more complex than ever. Platform engineering provides a framework for managing this complexity.
Self-service demand continues to grow: Developers are becoming increasingly accustomed to self-service tools and platforms. Platform engineering gives them the resources they need to increase productivity without relying on operations teams.
Lessons Learned from Implementation:
Successfully implementing platform engineering and DevOps requires careful planning and execution. Here are some important lessons learned:
● Start with culture, create a community, and open solutions to anyone in the company – Don’t create a silo where solutions are defined by dedicated teams, excluding developers, SREs, and infrastructure teams.
● Start small and gradually expand the scale. Trying to implement everything at once can be overwhelming and lead to failure.
● Focus on automation. Automate as many tasks as possible to free up developers and operations teams for more strategic work.
● Choose the right tools and techniques. Invest in tools that are well supported and integrated with each other.
● Build a strong collaborative culture. Encourage communication and knowledge sharing between developers and operations teams.
● Monitor and measure success. Track key metrics to identify areas for improvement and ensure continuous improvement.
● C-suite support is one of the keys to success.
●Platform engineering and DevOps have become powerful solutions, but their success depends on one key factor: developer experience (DX). Proactive DX enables developers to be more productive and efficient, thereby fostering a thriving DevOps culture. This is where an Internal Developer Portal (IDP) is crucial.
in conclusion
In today’s fast-paced digital world, organizations need to deliver high-quality software at ever-increasing speeds, and traditional methods no longer meet the requirements. Platform engineering combined with DevOps, these two powerful disciplines provide effective solutions for achieving agility, efficiency and innovation.
Platform engineering is the power source of productivity and innovation tools. It can completely change the way developers, SRE and infrastructure teams work. Through platform engineering, it can bring about more comprehensive and effective software development and operation processes, and organizations can achieve higher agility, efficiency and innovation that enable them to thrive in an evolving digital environment.
Here are some of the key trends that will shape the future of platform engineering:
● Increased adoption of artificial intelligence and machine learning: Artificial intelligence and machine learning will automate more tasks, personalize the developer experience, and optimize the performance and efficiency of the platform.
● By prioritizing the developer experience (DX) and leveraging the power of an internal developer platform (IDP), organizations can create an environment that fosters innovation, accelerates DevOps adoption, and helps developers realize their full potential. This, in turn, will drive success in the face of an ever-changing digital challenge and competitive landscape.
● The rise of the Internal Developer Portal (IDP): IDP will provide developers with a single point of access to all the tools and resources they need to build and deploy applications.
● Increased focus on security and compliance: Platform engineering needs to continue to evolve to address the growing security and compliance challenges of cloud-based environments.
● The emergence of Platform as a Service (PaaS): PaaS products will make it easier for organizations to adopt platform engineering without having to invest in building a platform.
