Rethinking Platform Development: A Critical Analysis

Asanka Abeysinghe
architect2architect
2 min readOct 28, 2023

--

Building an in-house platform can seem like a golden ticket to scalability and control. However, the path is fraught with complexities and pitfalls that can derail your project and exhaust resources.

Photo by John Matychuk on Unsplash

I recently published a post on VMBlog highlighting five crucial reasons why building a platform may not be the best choice for your organization.

Key Takeaways

  1. Cost Inefficiency: Development and maintenance costs can rapidly escalate.
  2. Technical Debt: Quick solutions often lead to long-term debt.
  3. Resource Drain: High-quality talent is diverted from other valuable projects.
  4. Time-to-Market: Extended development phases can make you miss market opportunities.
  5. Focus Shift: The organization’s core focus can become diluted.

Why You Should Read It

  • In-depth Analysis: The VMBlog article goes into detail about the risks and drawbacks, providing real-world examples and data to back the arguments.
  • Technical Audience: Written for technical decision-makers, the post eschews fluff in favor of straight facts and actionable insights.
  • Unbiased Perspective: Coming from a leader in the product space, this is not an academic hypothesis but a practical cautionary tale.

Conclusion

Before diving into platform development, understanding the challenges is crucial. This VMBlog post is a comprehensive guide that prompts you to think twice and strategize better.

For those in the decision-making echelons of tech companies, this is a must-read.

Abeysinghe, Asanka. 2023a. “Why Building a Platform May Not Be Your Best Bet — Exploring Five Critical Reasons : @VMblog.” VMblog.Com. October 6, 2023. https://vmblog.com/archive/2023/10/06/why-building-a-platform-may-not-be-your-best-bet-exploring-five-critical-reasons.aspx

--

--

Humanizing Technology | Architecting Transformation | CTO at WSO2, Inc. | @asankama | Infodoodler