Engineering Developer Success for a Global VR Platform
We helped a category-defining platform reduce app review failure rates by up to 83% - without lowering their standards.
One of the world's leading social media platforms - now operating a rapidly expanding virtual reality ecosystem - faced a growing operational issue: too many developers were failing key compliance requirements during app review.
Its app review and compliance requirements were rigorous by design. They protect users, uphold platform standards, and ensure quality across a fast-growing ecosystem of developers.
Standards are essential - but when they're unclear, they slow teams down instead of moving the ecosystem forward.
After a cross-functional analysis, we began to see patterns:
Developers weren't using platform tools as intended
Critical documentation was available, but underutilized
Data use and privacy requirements were frequently misunderstood
Review failures were creating friction and delaying approvals
This wasn't a documentation gap. It was a utilization gap. Developers had access to the information. What was missing was structured engagement at the moments that determine success.
We focused first on how developers were actually moving through the process.
If outcomes aren't improving, the question isn't whether information exists - it's where engagement is breaking down.
Diagnose the friction
We partnered closely with platform experts to map the full compliance lifecycle - from documentation to submission to review feedback.
We identified recurring failure patterns across critical requirements and surfaced systemic friction throughout the compliance journey - from initial submission through ongoing checks.
The problem wasn't random - it was structural.
Engineer the intervention
Instead of adding more static resources, we built a structured system designed to influence decisions at the moments that matter.
Audited and structured dozens of existing resources
Wrote more than 14,000 words of targeted content
Produced 7 focused courses - now a library of 20+
Created 9 new supporting resources - now 30+ Docs
Embedded the experience directly into the developer ecosystem
The program was designed to:
Clarify expectations before submission
Reduce avoidable review failures
Reinforce correct behaviors in context
Provide on-demand guidance without increasing time burden
The objective wasn't higher content consumption. It was improved developer performance.
Failure rates declined significantly after developers engaged with the program.
Impact was evaluated where change was expected - at the specific compliance checkpoints we targeted. The platform measured failure rates across key requirements, pre- and post-intervention:
These improvements reflect meaningful behavioral change. Developers are meeting requirements more successfully, resulting in fewer review cycles, reduced friction across teams, and faster paths to approval - without lowering standards.
The shift wasn't just in format - it was in placement and timing.
Rather than re-explaining requirements, we focused on the exact stages in the workflow where failure patterns emerged and engineered support around those inflection points.
Milestone-based structure
Aligned to real submission steps in the developer workflow
Asynchronous access
Respects developer autonomy and existing schedules
Embedded distribution
Delivered within existing platform communications, not bolted on
Outcome-based measurement
Tied to requirement outcomes, not content engagement metrics
By engineering how developers interact with critical information - we reduced predictable failure patterns and created a scalable system for continuous improvement.