Making Internal Platforms Real: Product Thinking for Shared IT Services

Many organisations build shared platforms, APIs, and internal services and then assume those components behave like external products: predictable roadmaps, clear value metrics, and dependable SLAs. Without explicit product thinking, business leaders hear vague promises and platform teams inherit shifting priorities, unpaid maintenance, and invisible costs. In this episode Mirko Peters walks through how treating internal platforms as real products changes funding conversations, decision rights, and the behaviour of both sides. You’ll get a pragmatic set of patterns: a one-page product charter for platform teams, how to translate business outcomes into platform SLAs, funding and prioritisation options that avoid stealth technical debt, and simple communication practices that reduce rework. This is a practical, non-hype look at operating models that produce predictable capability delivery while keeping maintenance visible and accountable.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/business-it-it-business--6867401/support.To continue the conversation, follow Mirko Peters on LinkedIn, where more insights and real-world examples are shared from both business and IT perspectives.