How to De-Risk Your Move to a Composable DXP

DXPs were once built as monoliths, all-in-one suites for content, commerce, personalization, and analytics. Centralized and predictable, they are no longer enough for today's demands for speed, integration, and AI.

A composable DXP goes a different route. It assembles packaged business capabilities (PBCs) that can adapt and scale as needs change. Instead of relying on one vendor's built-in features, it integrates modular applications and best-of-breed tools. This openness to third-party search, personalization, analytics, and more makes it ready for the future.

Here's what makes composable DXP different:

• Built on MACH principles: Microservices, API-first, cloud-native, headless
• Connect best-of-breed tools through APIs
• Adapt processes and teams around PBCs
• Scale and evolve without costly replatforms

Why it matters:

• For CTOs: Future-proof architecture with granular control
• For CIOs: Better vendor management and data flow across systems
• For CMOs: Agility to launch and optimize campaigns fast

Monoliths may still feel "safe," but over time, they become expensive blockers that hinder growth and innovation. This guide is for leaders evaluating the shift to a composable DXP; it will help you understand the top concerns, real risks, opportunities, and decisions ahead.

We've spoken with hundreds of decision-makers since delivering our first composable project. Here's a breakdown of the top concerns companies face when approaching a composable migration, and why those concerns are valid.

These are real concerns. However, they can be addressed with the right approach and the phased roadmap we stick to in our migration framework.

Even teams that decide to go composable often stumble. Here are the biggest pitfalls we see and how to make the switch right.

1. Underestimating the effort

Problem: A DXP project isn't just content migration.

Teams that treat it as a lift-and-shift often end up with bloated timelines, fragmented experiences, and mounting technical debt.

Solution: Treat migration as a transformation. Define the scope, a roadmap, and ownership clearly before any build begins.

2. Skipping the smooth experience strategy

Problem: A composable DXP gives freedom, but without a strategy, it leads to fragmentation.

When content governance isn't defined up front, the result is a disjointed UX, brand inconsistency, and overdependence on developers for daily updates.

Solution: Establish governance and design the customer experience strategy first—technology should serve the customer experience, not dictate it.

3. Choosing the wrong stack or APIs

Problem: Not all composable tools work well together.

Choosing incompatible headless components or unstable APIs leads to "microservices hell," meaning rising costs, missed deadlines, and constant integration issues that slow your teams down.

Solution: Use proven, well-integrated components and validate interoperability before committing to a stack.

4. Going "big-bang" without reason

Problem: A complete cutover to a new system sounds fast until something breaks.

Big-bang migrations risk broken user journeys and increased downtime. Without a phased rollout or rollback plan, recovery is slow and costly.

Solution: Roll out in phases. Start with high-value journeys, run in parallel, and keep a rollback path ready.

Composable isn't just about replacing tech but about giving teams autonomy without chaos. Brimit's migration framework is designed to prevent common traps.

Composable isn't always cheaper up front. But in the long term, you'll see greater business benefits if you plan the migration right.

The key is knowing where ROI actually comes from: agility, faster campaigns, personalization, and the ability to adapt without replatforming.

Check our practical composable playbook with tools, performance, and expected ROI explained.

Need a clearer picture of your ROI?

Request Brimit's TCO/ROI assessment. Contact us

Our approach is designed to reduce uncertainty and speed up value realization. Here's how we help you move from monolith to modular.

Brimit's 4-stage migration framework