Macadamian Blog

Why Design-Thinking hasn’t caught on in software

One of my colleagues, Francis Beaudet, just wrote a great article for our Critical Path newsletter called Why is Design Thinking Failing to Penetrate Software Companies? I love his point about how software teams think "Waterfall" when they hear "design up front" and run away screaming.

I'll add another reason why UX and usability isn't catching on at all software companies (or why some are simply paying it lip service) - with most enterprise software, the Buyer is not the User. Large enterprise systems are sold at a C-level or to the IT department, and often the people that have to actually use it, and whose productivity is supposed to go up tenfold for using it, aren't consulted.

On the other hand, in e-commerce, and to some degree SaaS, usability and user experience design is taken very seriously, because even small improvements in usability result in more conversions and more purchases. Salesforce.com is a good example - compared to traditional monolithic CRM systems, Salesforce.com is infinitely more usable. Why? Because it's sales-people who are buying it, not IT, and if Salesforce.com was difficult to use, they wouldn't buy it.

I once visited a large enterprise software company, and they asked me - how do you work? When I explained how we approach a project - observing users, rapid prototyping, testing and validating with users, and so on, their reply was, "that's nice, but we don't have that luxury here. We just hire good designers and make our best guesses".

Enterprise software companies could take a few lessons from .coms and SaaS companies, before their lunch is completely eaten.

How do you structure a team for innovation?

I had the privilege of attending the Forbes Leadership conference yesterday. If you ever have the chance to attend, it's a must.

The topic was innovation, and one panel was on innovation and teams. One panelist mentioned that he believed innovation was a team sport, an idea that I subscribe to.

We talked a bit about how to structure a team for innovation - what individual backgrounds, personalities, and roles make a great team that comes up with breakthrough innovations? Judy Estrin had a great answer - what's most important is not the specific backgrounds, but that the team has cognitive diversity. If you're trying to come up with a disruptive product, you need a team of people who each approach problems from different angles - who will challenge one another and help spark creative ideas by following brainstorming paths they might not have otherwise followed.

Good design and the top line

Typically, technology companies, especially those that sell to the enterprise, have not invested heavily in design. The most compelling and usable products today are consumer-oriented - products like the iPhone and Google, as great design directly translates to purchases and clicks.

In the enterprise, often the end-user isn't the buyer, and usability and design ends up taking a back seat in the purchasing decision to features and price. So companies that sell to the enterprise have traditionally found it hard to make the link between usability and the top line. They struggle to make the ROI link, and at best, can only make weak links between investing in usability and reducing support costs.

If you are building enterprise products, you need to read this article: The Mac in the Gray Flannel Suit. CIOs are being bombarded by workers who want Macs. Why? Because consumers are infatuated with iPhones, iPods, and Macs, and they want to use them at work too. Consider: Apple hardly has a corporate sales force. It's a struggle to get an Apple account rep. That's a dream situation for most technology companies.

What about software? Ask a sales team about their CRM system - 9 out of 10 will tell you they hate it, and reluctantly use it because it's been dictated from up high. Is it any wonder that Salesforce.com is growing so fast? They've made a usable application that makes it easy for small teams to sign-up and start using it. When Salesforce.com started, many were skeptical (and some still are) that they could penetrate Fortune 1000 sales teams. Take a look at Salesforce.com's press releases and you'll find many recognizable names. The SaaS model is empowering the end-user, and making it easier for end-users to discover and try products, and that's making it easier for companies who understand good design to leapfrog their traditional competitors.