The Pillars of an API Platform
Building and maintaining a successful API platform requires more than just technical capabilities; it demands a clear framework to guide decisions, set priorities, and foster collaboration across teams. This is where API pillars come into play.
API pillars serve as the guiding principles that define the foundation and direction of an API platform. They align organizational goals with technical execution, ensuring consistency, efficiency, and strategic focus.
In this article, we will explore the concept of API pillars, their critical role in API platform success, and how to establish a set of pillars tailored to your organization’s unique needs. Whether you are embarking on your API journey or seeking to refine an existing strategy, understanding and implementing these pillars will be instrumental in achieving long-term success.
What are API Pillars?
API pillars are broad statements that outline an organization’s core principles and areas of focus required to operate successfully. Market needs, regulations, security, and operational efficiency often shape API pillars. In some cases, API pillars may be standard across industries, while others are unique differentiators tailored to specific business needs or market demands.
Why do we need API Pillars?
API pillars help teams make smaller decisions quickly and easily. They underpin your standards, practices, and policies that support your overall API platform strategy. Without clearly-defined API pillars, teams will fail to prioritize their work and operate the API platform successfully.
Establishing a Foundation for Your API Pillars
Before we can define our API Pillars, we must recognize that nearly all IT-related pillars fall into three areas: strategy and governance, management, and operations. We extended these areas into the API platform to align with these IT foundational areas to ensure familiarity and consistency in execution across the IT landscape:
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API Strategy and Governance - Pillars related to the platform strategy, business alignment, governance, and enablement associated with the API platform. Business alignment is a critical aspect of governance and ensures that the API platform is an extension of the business goals and business architecture.
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API Management - Pillars related to the ownership and management of the overall API platform and individual platform APIs. This includes portfolio management, domain-level ownership of platform APIs, and the API management lifecycle.
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API Operations - Pillars related to security and operations of the API to ensure that all platform APIs are continually evaluated for proper security measures, optimized deployment, and continuous monitoring and improvement.
The division of policies into these three foundational areas offers a versatile model that applies broadly across IT domains. It is important to note that these areas are widely used in other IT governance domains and are not exclusive to APIs. They serve as foundational pillars in managing and governing various IT systems and services. By aligning to these three common areas, the API platform may be managed similar to other IT policies, systems, and services.
The 8 API Pillars of an API Platform
Through a decade of partnering with organizations to establish, grow, and mature their API strategy and execution, we have identified 8 pillars for any API platform:
API Strategy and Governance
Pillar #1: Strategy & Business Alignment champions the importance of APIs in driving business success and innovation, built upon transparent communication and a clearly communicated vision. When this pillar isn’t applied, organizations lack a focus on the API platform, resulting in fragmented execution driven by projects rather than a platform mindset.
Pillar #2: Governance & Enablement embodies our commitment to upholding rigorous standards and continuous improvement within the API management practices. It also fosters an environment where consistency in API delivery is paired with the flexibility to evolve, enabling the organization to meet both current and future demands efficiently and effectively.
API Management
Pillar #3: Portfolio & Domain Ownership underscores our dedication to effective management and strategic oversight of our digital assets to maximize both operational efficiency and value generation. Collectively, these policies ensure that our digital portfolio is both aligned with our strategic objectives and optimized to support current and future business needs.
Pillar #4: Discovery & Documentation ensures that all internal and external stakeholders, from software engineers to business analysts, can easily access, understand, and effectively leverage APIs to reduce redundancy, foster innovation, and drive efficiencies across the organization.
Pillar #5: Design & Delivery commits to the delivery of robust, scalable, and secure APIs through a disciplined and efficient design and delivery process. It also helps to enable faster time-to-market and greater adaptability to meet the evolving needs of our users and the marketplace, while avoiding the creation of fit-for-purpose APIs that lack reusability..
Pillar #6: Consumer Onboarding & Adoption streamlines the initial engagement and continuous development process for software engineers consuming platform APIs. This pillar ensures a swift and smooth transition from initial contact to active development to encourage long-term satisfaction and success among consumers utilizing our digital assets.
API Operations
Pillar #7: Security & Operations ensures the highest standards of security and operational excellence across our API ecosystem, to maintain the trust and reliability of our customers, partners, and stakeholders.
Pillar #8: Runtime Management & Monitoring applies API ownership through monitoring, continuous improvement, and stakeholder engagement.
Getting Started with your API Platform Pillars
To identify your own pillars for your API platform, it’s important to first identify the fundamental areas required for success, then group them based on their relevance to the organization.
After selecting the key pillars, create brief statements for each to clarify how they underpin the business and guide your API platform’s strategic direction.
Finally, feel free to leverage the pillars outlined above as a starting point. These pillars represent over a decade of API strategy development for global organizations. However, keep in mind that you may need to make adjustments based on any industry-specifics that may impact your API pillars.
Without a clear and firm foundation established, day-to-day decisions will slowly erode your API platform effectiveness.
Eager to get started? Contact us to jumpstart your API platform effort.