Platform Engineering Reality Check: From Big Dreams to Practical Steps
Byte Size (INTERMEDIATE level)
Platform engineering journeys often start with ambitious visions of seamless developer experience and full self-service capabilities. The reality, however, is typically far more incremental.
In this talk, Paula will share three real world case studies highlighting the tangible value platforms can deliver while also showing that successful platforms are not built overnight. They begin with practical, sometimes unglamorous or boring steps, and the most impactful initiatives are guided by clear metrics, continuous user feedback, and a strong focus on developer needs.
Drawing on examples from across different industries, this session describes the common patterns, trade-offs, and pitfalls teams encounter on their platform journey. Attendees will leave with practical advice on where to start, how to measure progress, and how to turn big platform dreams into achievable, sustainable outcomes.
In this talk, Paula will share three real world case studies highlighting the tangible value platforms can deliver while also showing that successful platforms are not built overnight. They begin with practical, sometimes unglamorous or boring steps, and the most impactful initiatives are guided by clear metrics, continuous user feedback, and a strong focus on developer needs.
Drawing on examples from across different industries, this session describes the common patterns, trade-offs, and pitfalls teams encounter on their platform journey. Attendees will leave with practical advice on where to start, how to measure progress, and how to turn big platform dreams into achievable, sustainable outcomes.
Paula Kennedy
Syntasso
Paula is Cofounder & Chief Operating Officer of Syntasso; her previous roles include Senior Director at VMware Tanzu and Cofounder & Chief Operating Officer of CloudCredo.
With 20+ years experience in the IT industry, Paula champions community, diversity and inclusion and has spoken at many conferences including KubeCon and the LeadDev conference. She is a CNCF Ambassador, an OpenUK Ambassador as well as a Team Topologies Advocate. Paula is an organiser for KCD UK and Fast Flow Conference, as well as the London Platform User Group. In her spare time she enjoys walking her dog and attempting to run half-marathons.
With 20+ years experience in the IT industry, Paula champions community, diversity and inclusion and has spoken at many conferences including KubeCon and the LeadDev conference. She is a CNCF Ambassador, an OpenUK Ambassador as well as a Team Topologies Advocate. Paula is an organiser for KCD UK and Fast Flow Conference, as well as the London Platform User Group. In her spare time she enjoys walking her dog and attempting to run half-marathons.