Apr 04 2008
Making Software Simpler
Is your software simple and usable?
There was an interesting opinion piece at Sandhill.com last week titled “Simplicity: What’s Next in Business Software” by Anthony Deighton of QlikTech.
Anthony pointed out that the gap between what software users experience in their workplace and in the rest of their life is widening while the line between work and home continues to blur. Business users are starting to expect that the applications they use at work be as clear, user-friendly, intuitive and simple as the other software they use.
The bottom line is that enterprise software vendors must “simplify or die” by embracing a philosophy of simplicity or risk getting left behind in the future by innovative and emerging vendors.
There are several characteristics of “simple” software that Anthony lists in his piece, including:
- Continue to offer robustness - “simple” is not the same as “lite”
- Focus on the user - enterprise software vendors need to focus on the user for a change
- Revamp the value chain - make sure you pick partner vendors and service providers who embrace the simplicity vision
- Deliver a fast sales and implementation process - the product must be easy for users, but also deliver quick value to the business
- Relentlessly pursue simplicity - you have to keep focusing on making your product usable and faster to deploy
Check out the full article and complete discussion thread from this link.
[...] deanmartin wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptAnthony pointed out that the gap between what software users experience in their workplace and in the rest of their life is widening while the line between work and home continues to blur. Business users are starting to expect that the … [...]