In retail, a high-performing platform isn’t just a technical milestone — it’s a strategic imperative. At BJSS, we designed and deployed a scalable, resilient, and continuously deployable platform , balancing cutting-edge automation with cultural transformation.
Achieving elite performance
The DevOps Research and Assessment (DORA) framework defines elite platform teams based on four key metrics:
- Deployment frequency: Multiple deployments per day
- Lead time for changes: Less than a day
- Time to restore service: Under an hour
- Change failure rate: Below 15%
Only about 20% of teams meet these elite standards, typically in technology-first companies like Amazon and Netflix. However, we successfully implemented these principles for a major global retailer, transitioning them to a cloud-native, microservices-based architecture with continuous deployment capabilities
Transforming deployment practices
Traditional platforms often rely on infrequent, large-scale releases, increasing risk and complexity. We shifted to trunk-based development, storing all code in Git and ensuring every commit was linked to a Jira ticket for traceability. Our architecture enabled automated, on demand deployments across all environments. Using Infrastructure as Code, we avoided manual production changes, maintaining system integrity.
Continuous deployment and zero downtime
Our blue/green deployment strategy ensured zero downtime, seamlessly switching traffic between application versions. Automated testing — including unit, integration, and smoke tests — eliminated reliance on manual validation, enhancing deployment velocity and stability. Major feature releases took advantage of ‘dark releases’, ensuring we could validate functionality in production before it was available to end users.
Overcoming challenges
Scaling a cost-effective, ephemeral environment structure required innovative resource-sharing strategies. Managing high test reliability and third-party dependencies also demanded robust monitoring and alerting systems. Most critically, fostering a high-trust culture empowered developers to embrace automation and continuous deployment confidently.
The future of platform development in retail
By treating platform development as a product, we gained stakeholder trust, streamlined processes, and enhanced platform stability. This journey highlights the transformative power of automation and cultural evolution in a retail setting. The question for retailers isn’t whether to evolve — but how fast they can adapt to stay ahead.
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