What is an “Epic Driver”?
An Epic Driver is responsible for the implementation of complex user stories, so-called “epics”, of large platform projects. This includes concept review, technical implementation with the development team and functional clarification with the architects. The Epic Driver forms the interface between customers and our technical development. He is of course also part of the development team and implements user stories and fixes bugs.

What makes platforms so complex?
I work on the central platform for networking the vehicles of the largest car manufacturer in the world, and that for all group brands. It forms the group standard and thus enables the brands to offer individual service portfolios. But above all: to react quickly to market requirements, in all markets, across all brands. A uniform “group platform” also brings with it the high safety requirements associated with vehicle networking, which must be consistently adhered to.

What is the biggest challenge?
Our client has an enormous number of end users: potentially all vehicle owners who use an online product. So, we are talking about millions. In future, there will be many more, as the networking of the vehicle becomes more and more natural. For so many users worldwide, building the backend software of the online services, constantly expanding it and keeping it reliable is quite complex, but also immensely interesting.

Is the secure expansion of the backend possible in view of the expected development?
Scaling requirements are already a big issue. In a few years, we will be in the dimension of very large internet services, in terms of the number of user accesses per minute. We will make many changes in the backend architecture to meet this mega-growth with sufficient resources. To answer the question: It is possible, of course. Provided of course, that you are prepared for it.