The Backstage Chronicles Chapter 1: A Hero’s Journey to Save Developer Time

Every Legend Begins with Chaos

Once upon a time, in a bustling land of code and coffee, there was a software development team on the verge of losing its collective mind. Projects were growing, services were multiplying, and developers spent more time searching for answers than writing code.

At the center of this chaos stood Linda, the team’s heroic Senior Developer. Linda was the Keeper of Knowledge, the Guardian of Documentation, and the Bringer of Best Practices. She was the one person who could untangle even the messiest of microservice mysteries.

But Linda had a secret: she was exhausted. Every day, developers sought her out for answers:

• “Linda, who owns the API Gateway?”
• “Linda, where’s the documentation for the car-configurator API?”
• “Linda, can you help me spin up a new Kotlin microservice?”

Linda answered every question with a smile, but inside, she dreamed of a world where developers could find answers on their own.

A Note About Linda

While Linda’s persona is fictional, her story is very real. It represents the journey of Backstage adoption within Mercedes-Benz — capturing the challenges we face daily as a software-driven company, the creative solutions we’ve implemented, and the ongoing evolution of how we work.

Linda embodies every developer, manager, and team member who strives to create clarity in chaos and bring efficiency to innovation.

The Meme: The Standards War

Somewhere in a meeting room, amidst endless debates about tech stacks, integrations, and workflows, Linda sighs.

She pulls out her phone and scrolls through a meme— a perfect visual representation of what happens when standards proliferate:

“Different Standards, Same Outcome.”

Linda knew this all too well. Without a shared ground, every team was choosing something different, causing confusion, inefficiency, and wasted effort.

The Call to Adventure

One fateful day, after her 27th “Who owns this service?” question, Linda decided enough was enough. There had to be a better way — a tool, a process, a magic artifact— that could restore order to the team.

Linda gathered her courage, opened her laptop, and began her quest. Her search led her to a mythical solution, whispered about in the halls of the software world: Backstage.

Created by Spotify (yes, the people who make your “Focus Beats” playlist), Backstage is an open-source developer portal that centralises your tools, services, and documentation in one beautiful hub.

This was the magic Linda had been searching for — a hero’s weapon to slay the dragons of chaos.

The Trials of Implementation

Like any hero’s journey, Linda’s path was not without its challenges. Backstage wasn’t a quick fix— it was a portal that needed to be carefully set up to unlock its full power. With templates to configure, integrations to connect, and documentation to centralize, the road ahead was daunting.

On top of this, Backstage wasn’t initially designed for large-scale enterprise use: handling hundreds of GitHub organisations, multiple cross-functional teams, intricate infrastructure, and more. Scalability, performance, and usability quickly became fundamental priorities.

But Linda wasn’t alone. She rallied her team, inspiring them with the promise of a future where they could:

• Find documentation in seconds.
• Instantly know who owned every service.
• Spin up new services with pre-configured templates.
• Follow best practices without thinking twice.

The team worked together, overcoming the hurdles one by one. Slowly but surely, Backstage began to take shape, and the chaos began to fade.

The Transformation

With Backstage fully operational, the team entered a new era. Gone were the days of endless Teams threads, frantic JIRA searches, and unanswered questions. Now, developers had a single portal where they could:

• Discover Everything: Documentation, service ownership, dependencies—it was all just a search away.
• Collaborate Easily: Clear ownership data meant no more finger-pointing or confusion about responsibilities.
• Create Faster: Standardized templates turned service creation into a breeze, cutting setup time.
• Follow Best Practices: Automated guardrails ensured everyone stayed on track without needing constant reminders.
• Deploy with Confidence: Unified pipelines made deployments smoother, reducing production bugs.

Linda, once the sole bearer of the team’s institutional knowledge, could finally breathe easy. Instead of answering the same questions over and over, she spent her time mentoring, innovating, and occasionally taking a well-earned nap.

How? The Secrets Behind Backstage’s Superpowers

Now that we’ve seen how Linda saved her team and restored order to their chaotic workflow, it’s time to answer the big question: How does Backstage actually work its magic?

1. The Case of the Missing Everything (aka Discoverability Woes)

Modern engineering organizations are like treasure hunts—with no map.

Backstage gives you that map. It’s a single, central hub where developers can find all their services, tools, and documentation without digging through endless email threads or Teams messages.

2. The Mystery of the Ghost Code (aka Ownership Problems)

When services go down in production, playing detective wastes precious time.

Backstage fixes this by tracking service ownership automatically. Now, you’ll always know who to call (and it’s probably not André from IT).

3. The Waiting Game (aka Slow Service Creation)

Even with Nebula (Our infrastructure platform) streamlining managed services, guidelines, and support, teams still faced challenges in navigating documentation, finding the right contacts, and reusing proven solutions. Backstage takes this to the next level — its catalog and software templates make it easier to leverage best practices, avoid repetitive work, and build on what the best teams have already mastered. Instead of solving the same problems repeatedly, teams can focus on innovation, efficiency, and delivering value faster.

Backstage simplifies this with templates that let developers create production-ready services in minutes. It’s bureaucracy-free coding bliss.

4. The “We’ll Fix It Later” Epidemic (aka Best Practices Gone AWOL)

Some teams shine with spotless docs, CI/CD pipelines, and monitoring, while others... not so much.

Backstage helps teams gradually align with best practices — like a gentle nudge toward healthier habits, making the right choices effortles

5. The Tower of Tech Babel (aka Fragmentation Chaos)

Half your teams use PostgreSQL, half use MongoDB, and one guy insists on SQLite “because it’s artisanal.”

Without a common ground, these different standards proliferate until they’re competing with one another. Standards multiply like rabbits — leading to confusion and inefficiency. Backstage solves this by giving teams a unified ground to standardize workflows and tools.

The Impact: A Legend in the Making

Every hero’s journey is measured by its impact, and Backstage delivers:

• Less Time Searching for Documentation: Developers now find what they need in seconds.
• Faster Service Creation: Standardised templates and workflows saved precious time.
• Reduction in Miscommunications: Clear ownership data improved collaboration across teams.

Why Should You Care?

Why Backstage? Because it’s your teams new superhero, solving problems faster than you can say, “Whose microservice is this, anyway?”

Backstage isn’t just about saving time; it’s about empowering your team to work smarter. It gives developers the tools they need to thrive — making your organization more productive, collaborative, and innovative.

So, are you ready to embark on your own hero’s journey? Backstage is here to guide you.

Ready to Begin Your Backstage Journey?

If Linda’s hero’s journey resonated with you, why not start your own? Whether you’re looking to conquer chaos, save time, or simply impress your team, Backstage is your trusty sidekick.

And if you’re one of the lucky few with a three-pointed star on your paycheck (yes, you, Mercedes-Benz crew!), your Backstage is already waiting for you — fresh, shiny, and custom-built. 🚗

Because heroes don’t just need tools — they need the right tools. Go ahead, claim your cape.

See you in a bit. 👋