Getting Software Development Right

When I took on the role of CTO at Brown & Blue Circles, my first instinct was simple: build the software that customers ask for.

Then someone I respect in the industry told me a story.

At an annual user group meeting for a well-known software product, users voted on the five features they most wanted. The development team delivered all five within six months. At the following year’s meeting, they asked how those features had been received.

Only one person had actually used any of them.

That stuck with me.

More Features Don’t Solve Problems

It’s easy to assume that good software means more features. In reality, users rarely need more features. What they need are tools that help them work efficiently.

Yes, every system has minor irritations, and those should always be addressed. But what users actually need is a software that:

• removes roadblocks
• simplifies time-consuming tasks
• reduces errors
• makes workflows smooth and predictable

That’s where real value comes from.

Why This Gets Missed

Different stakeholders optimize for a different aspect in a software. Users want tools that make their day-to-day work easier. Business owners want tools that reduce costs or bring new opportunities. Both are reasonable – but both can lead to software that looks busy, or even unnecessarily complicated, but doesn’t improve how work gets done.

The Cost Equation Is Often Wrong

Software is almost always cheaper than people. Yet it’s remarkable how often organisations focus on reducing software costs while overlooking the much larger cost of inefficient workflows.

Real savings come from efficiency and not just from cheaper licenses. It is a result of doing the same work with fewer people while reducing rework and errors and speeding up delivery.

And if your tools allow you to offer clients something your competitors can’t (or with far greater ease), that’s not just efficiency,  that’s growth. In that context, software isn’t an expense. It’s an enabler.

Flexibility Over Control

One question I’m often asked is whether everything should sit within a single platform. The honest answer is: not necessarily. A strong core platform matters. But so does the ability to step outside it.

Some software providers take the view that their system should do everything, sometimes making an escape difficult or impossible. I take the opposite view. The goal should be flexibility, the ability to move data, integrate with other tools, and adapt to different requirements.

Real-world environments aren’t static. Requirements change. Data evolves. Workflows shift. Software should adapt to that, not constrain it.

Where AI Fits, and Where It Doesn’t

AI is already proving useful in several areas. It can handle large volumes of text. It can reduce the burden of repetitive, labor-intensive tasks. It can help generate output more quickly. Used well, it will make certain aspects of data processing significantly easier.

But AI doesn’t solve everything. It doesn’t define structure. And without structure, even the best automation becomes fragile. It doesn’t design workflows. It doesn’t replace the need for systems that are flexible and reliable. At its best, AI supports good processes. It doesn’t replace them.

If you combine strong workflows with intelligent automation, the results can be powerful. If you rely on AI alone, you’re likely to run into the same limitations in a different form.

From Productivity to Workflow

Historically, MRDCL has focused on power, flexibility and productivity. But “productivity” is a surprisingly difficult thing to communicate. People don’t always believe it, and too often they underestimate how much time they’re actually losing.

What matters more,  and what I’m increasingly focused on, is workflow. Making things possible, making complex tasks manageable, and reducing friction across the entire process. If you get the workflow right, productivity follows naturally.

Getting It Right

We won’t get everything right the first time. No software team ever does.

But the goal is clear: not more features, but better workflows.

Because when work becomes easier, everything else, efficiency, quality, and even innovation, follows.