Increasing adoption of the cloud has paved the path for a plethora of platform-native services designed to abstract its perceived complexities. Such services come with their own limitations and complexities that can hinder an organization's ability to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving and hyper-competitive landscape. With an emphasis on open source and core cloud primitives, we will examine how adopting a portable approach can provide the flexibility and scalability needed for long-term success in the cloud.