Ali Alkhathami Say hi

Hi, I’m

Ali Alkhathami.

I’m an acting lead platform engineer at Lean Business Services. I design, build, ship and maintain platforms of every kind, and I’m happiest when they run themselves.

People

  • Analysts
  • Researchers
  • Leadership
  • Engineers

Products

  • Databank
  • Research Avenue
  • Lean Data Platform
  • Data Management Portal

Platforms

  • Data
  • AI
  • Apps
  • Internal tools

Delivery

  • Automation
  • Releases
  • Security
  • Cost

Infrastructure

  • Kubernetes
  • Cloud
  • On-premises
  • Monitoring

I enjoy every one of these layers, and the spaces between them.

Personal best70%faster deployments
Personal best40%off the compute bill
And counting1,000+people on platforms I built
None on fire60+services I keep running

Things I’ve built

Four platforms for four very different crowds: a country’s health sector, researchers from around the world, my own company, and the data teams down the hall.

Nationwide service

Databank

The Ministry of Health’s data platform.

Staff from organisations across the health sector come here to explore data, ask questions in plain language and build their own dashboards, whether or not they’ve ever written a query. Each person sees exactly what they’re allowed to see, and nothing more.

0 engineers needed to run it day to day. Ministry admins decide who gets in and what they can see, and each organisation’s own managers look after their people. That was the goal from day one.
International research service

Research Avenue

A front door for researchers from anywhere in the world. Each one gets a private workspace with the tools researchers already know, and can work with sensitive health data without ever taking it home. Results get checked before they leave, and the research team runs it all themselves.

Internal company service

Lean Data Platform

Puts the whole picture in front of the people who make the calls. Leadership and non-technical teams sign in once and find the dashboards, reports and AI agents they need, without asking anyone for help.

Department service

Data Management Portal

Built for the data teams next door. It takes the slow, email-heavy parts of their day and turns each one into a quick request with an approval and a record:

Access
Changes
Deliveries
AI agents

Less ops. Faster business.

If I had to put my job on a sticky note, that’s what it would say. Here’s what’s behind it.

If it needs a babysitter, it isn’t done.

A platform that only works while someone watches it is a demo, not a platform. It’s finished when the people using it don’t need to call anyone.

Zoom out before zooming in.

The problem is rarely in the layer where it shows up. I look at the whole thing first: the people, the product, the pipes.

Give people the keys.

The teams who use a platform should be able to run their day without waiting on engineering. Every ticket that disappears is time the business gets back.

Quiet releases, loud results.

Shipping should be the calmest part of anyone’s week. The energy belongs in what the platform makes possible.

Things I like doing

Some of this is my job and some of it isn’t. Most days it’s hard to tell the difference.

The story so far

Short, so far. Give it time.

  1. 2018

    Started engineering at KFUPMApplied Computer Engineering at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals.

  2. 2023

    Joined Lean as a site reliability engineerStarted out keeping things running, and kept finding things worth building.

  3. 2024

    GraduatedDegree in hand, already working on production systems.

  4. 2026

    Acting lead of a six-person platform engineering teamPicked for Lean’s leadership track. Now I spend part of my week helping other engineers grow.

Want something that runs itself?

I’m always up for talking shop. Email is the best way to reach me.

Alkhathami.ali3@gmail.com