Previously, we have investigated the changing role of CIOs in today’s fast-paced marketplace and explored the reasons why product design is a critical investment for IT C-level executives. It’s clear that the lines between technology and business strategy have blurred over the last decade and, consequently, the role of an IT leader has been growing in importance for companies across the globe. CIOs are now engaged in driving strategic initiatives and creating long term value.

They are responsible for better understanding software product design processes, their capabilities and the reasons why they are invaluable in achieving organisational goals. As a result, software product design should be viewed as a strategic investment that will reduce project risks and bolster future business outcomes. 

The next question is who partners with CIOs to deliver these valuable competencies for company projects? Whilst developers will write the code, there are a number of software product design specialists who are instrumental in driving success. These people include business analysts, user experience specialists and technical architects. Businesses may also benefit from involving external experts on artificial intelligence, machine learning, or Cloud computing, but these three pivotal roles are crucial to ensuring the project and software design meets the organisation's needs. 

Business Analysts

Business analysts work with CIOs and organisations to help them improve their processes and systems. They also conduct research and analysis in order to identify solutions to business problems, as well as help to introduce these systems to organisations and their customers. From a product design perspective, business analysts are responsible for gathering, analysing and distributing the knowledge related to the product at the very beginning of the project and throughout its course of development. They look at how the company operates and suggest methods for the company to improve their project, with the aim to boost the bottom line, solve existing problems and achieve future success. 

Additionally, they serve as a source of knowledge and a constant point of contact for IT executives and the whole team to address questions and suggestions about the product. Business analysts will not only have an understanding of the wider business, but also the sector as a whole to make recommendations for the new software product and how it can be developed to meet industry needs. They are also expected to know who holds the knowledge about specific parts of the systems and processes. This is vital as a recent report from the Standish Group found that user involvement and a clear understanding of requirements is among the top five factors found in successful projects. 

What’s more, business analysts straddle the line between IT and the business to help bridge the gap and improve efficiency. Using data analytics, they can assess processes related to the project, determine requirements and deliver data-driven recommendations and reports to CIOs and stakeholders who have an invested interest in the software product design. Furthermore, they will engage with business leaders and users to understand how data-driven changes to the process and product can improve efficiency and add value in the long term. 

User experience specialists 

Working alongside business analysts, user experience specialists help businesses create a project with a human-centred approach. With this in mind, they are responsible for setting up, running and reporting on all aspects of the user experience research, in order to develop a deeper understanding of the company’s customers. From this, they will need to translate these findings into action. This is critical in the product design process as it ensures customers are provided with a better digital experience, encouraging them to spend more time with the organisation’s product and bringing real financial value to the business. 

User experience specialists will collaborate with IT, marketing, product management and development leaders to make sure the product design process is as seamless as possible. They help to create and document the vision for the end-product user experience, serving as a customer advocate to ensure the software delivers the highest level of usefulness, desirability and client satisfaction. As the project evolves, user experience specialists will also conduct user testing and other user-facing activities to validate the design, interaction and content, to bolster the long term success of the software product. 

Technical architects

The final piece in the product design puzzle is technical architects who are responsible for the entire product design process. Within this role, they are responsible for acting as a link between the company, CIOs and the specialists who are working on the product design. This means that they should be engaged in the development of functional and non-functional requirements before the development team begins working on a project. In addition to the high level of technical expertise, technical architects also need advanced communication skills to successfully communicate with stakeholders both internally and externally. 

Technical architects are technical leaders in projects, who not only create technical vision but also make sure that the development teams follow the process in a streamlined and efficient manner within the expected timeframe. They also work with the client from the conceptual phase of the project in order to understand the domain and business needs of the system, alongside the business analysts. Following this, they ensure that the business goals correspond to the client’s needs and this early influence helps to minimise unforeseen costs and potential project risks. 

Expediting future change and success 

Thanks to specialists from various areas across the business, software product design services are a hybrid of design, user experience, technology and comprehensive business analysis. This unique approach enables companies to look at their idea from various perspectives and correctly evaluate it. 

Engaging software product design specialists will help CIOs deliver IT product strategies that their clients can implement. This process involves planning a software solution that is compliant with security standards and easy when it comes to future maintenance and developing additional features. The focus for IT executives is based on creating the roadmap for the product, analysing pain points and constraints of the current application, plus planning non-functional aspects of the technical solution. 

For companies who want to start their digital transformation, but have no idea how to start or overcome these challenges, engaging with software product design specialists is the best way to find suitable solutions to their business’ evolving needs. Ultimately, aligning IT projects with the company’s goals will successfully lead the business innovation.