Shifting to User-Centered SD: Embracing Continuous Discovery

In software development, familiar challenges persist: the gap between IT specialists and domain experts, the rush to rebuild older features under tight deadlines, and new systems failing to surpass their predecessors. These issues stem from a focus solely on technical implementation rather than user-centric value.

What if we approached development differently? By involving domain experts from the start, validating hypotheses about target customers, and understanding feature contexts before implementation, we could prioritize continuous learning, experimentation, and iteration. Testing features with low-cost experiments before committing to development would become standard practice. This shift requires a fundamental change in our approach to work and progress tracking. Instead of measuring success by the number of implemented features, we should focus on measurable outcomes that contribute to sustainable impact. Continuous improvement becomes the norm, with users actively participating in product development and adopting new features.

In this talk, we explore principles of continuous discovery and their transformative effect on software development. We discuss steps to adopt a user-centric approach, emphasizing understanding the "why" behind decisions and involving domain experts. We'll illustrate how a light tower project, focused on measurable outcomes and continuous discovery, can initiate a mindset change across the organization. Join us in transforming software development into a collaborative effort to deliver value to users.


PRESENTER: Theres Scheucher: https://squer.link/theres-scheucher

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Chapters:
00:00​​ Start of Streaming
00:53 Intro & Welcome
02:07 Brainfood Talk
37:06​​​​ Q&A Session