Software Is Not Code; It Creates Experiences

Ultimately, customers don't judge you based on how well you gather business requirements, choose development technologies, manage projects, or march through the development process — they judge you based on how they feel before, during, and after they use your software. This is the digital experience. If you get the customer experience wrong, then nothing else matters. And expectation inflation is sky-high thanks to the Apple-led smartphone revolution. To succeed in the new age of digital experience, application development professionals must collaborate with their business partners and customers to create experiences that customers love. You need a new approach represented by these five axioms:

  1. Software is not code; it creates experience.
  2. Development teams are not coders; they are experience creators.
  3. Technical talent is table stakes; great developers must be design and domain experts.
  4. Process is bankrupt without design; you get what you design, so you had better get the design right.
  5. Software is a creative endeavor, not an industrial process like building automobiles. Structure your methodology to empower your creative talent.

Doable? Definitely. Forrester clients can read the full report to learn how: Digital Experience Strategy: Follow These Three Mega Rules To Beat The Competition In 2012.