Thread by @levie

One of the most fun parts of enterprise software is the relationship between tech innovation and how work happens. The process generally goes like this…

1. Some characteristic of how we work is inefficient or filled with friction. Maybe it’s how we collaborate, process orders, close the books, or manage inventory. Usually there’s existing technology involved (but not always) but that tech hasn’t caught up with the real process.

2. Either the existing technology is failing, or the process is fully analog. People are now working around the solution instead of in it. Often, a new startup is first to identify this gap in current solutions, and leverages some modern technology to solve the problem.

3. That technology has some new characteristics that make the process better. Maybe the tool makes something real-time that used to be asynchronous, maybe it processes 100X the amount of data, maybe it automates a function that was cost prohibitive before. Basically, cool shit.

4. As that technology gets adopted, at first the customer tried to map their existing workflow and process to that new technology as closely as they can. And the startup tries to map to those existing patterns as closely as possible to win business. This is only natural.

5. But eventually the native benefits of using the new tech start to shine, and the work itself begins to change. What each worker does in the process is different (ideally better), and the very output of the process is different (ideally better).

6. At this point, the new process may not even be recognizable from the original workflow. Now, the tech has shaped the business instead of the other way around. This might change the culture of the company, the products it produces, the way it serves customers, and more.

7. But guess what! The world continues to adapt and change, and new gaps emerge in the process, even after being enabled by the new magical technology. New inefficiencies emerge, new points of friction have been created. And so the cycle repeats.

8. Essentially this has happened since the beginning of software in the workplace, and will continue to happen forever, ensuring this industry has an infinite amount of opportunity.