Discussion on: Small Business Custom Software Development - Always a Challenge http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/customapps/small-business-custom-software-development-always-a-challenge/ Mon, 06 Oct 2008 18:35:11 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=wordpress-mu-1.2.1 By: LadyRatri http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/customapps/small-business-custom-software-development-always-a-challenge/#comment-17 LadyRatri Thu, 18 Oct 2007 04:23:23 +0000 http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/customapps/small-business-custom-software-development-always-a-challenge/#comment-17 Beyond just tolerating "klunkiness", it's always a surprise when business or operational process is designed around the deficiencies of a tool or its interface -- especially when it adds significantly to the time it takes users to do their day-to-day work. Having moved into an application development group after starting out in operations, I have a first-hand view of that frustration. You make a good point about a very real, and often overlooked, problem. A brilliant worker can't make up for a poorly designed application. I feel like too often, we have trouble gaining access to the specific people who will be "in the trenches" using an application, and end up talking to business owners further up the management tree instead of team members or leads who spend their time doing the work and living the specific details and problems our applications are designed to address. It's like playing a game of telephone -- the messages always get garbled. Beyond just tolerating “klunkiness”, it’s always a surprise when business or operational process is designed around the deficiencies of a tool or its interface — especially when it adds significantly to the time it takes users to do their day-to-day work. Having moved into an application development group after starting out in operations, I have a first-hand view of that frustration. You make a good point about a very real, and often overlooked, problem. A brilliant worker can’t make up for a poorly designed application.

I feel like too often, we have trouble gaining access to the specific people who will be “in the trenches” using an application, and end up talking to business owners further up the management tree instead of team members or leads who spend their time doing the work and living the specific details and problems our applications are designed to address. It’s like playing a game of telephone — the messages always get garbled.

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