It’s been over 2 months since I started working full time. This is a phase I’ve longed for, and now that I am here, it is definitely enjoyable. There is lots to do, learn and think about. A lot of chaos in short. No doubt there are a mix of good and frustrating days; so much clarity on some days, while on others I am lost and confused, trying to put it all together.
There is a sense of freedom like I have never experienced before. You can do anything you wish, it all depends on how you draw the points today, but what is the best way to place these points ? Only time can tell.
Working in a not-so big organization is definitely a good decision. I see the product, engineering, design, sales and marketing teams working together, and working together in perfect sync and unison.
Again, let’s make it clear, over and above everything, the numbers matter, I’ve said this before. Set Big Hairy Audacious Goals; BHAGs (reference Built To Last) and mobilize the teams to go after them.
This is probably how it all works together, correct me if I’m mistaken —
The marketing teams reach out to potential customers, amplify the value proposition offered and ensure word is spread far and wide.
The pre-sales team talk to the potential prospects, understand their pain points and help determine if and whether our offering can solve the problem and make the lives of customers better!
Essentially all of us should keep selling always, let the world know your super power.
The product and design teams work closely with the sales to understand these pain points. Based on feedback from the sales teams, current trends in the market they create a roadmap of how the product should evolve. This definitely requires thorough and iterative discussions from a feasibility standpoint. Do the timelines make sense ? Is it worth the time and money ? The most important question — Will there be user adoption :?
Based on the features/enhancements, the design team gets to work and defines the UX flows — Can’t stress enough on the importance of having a good user experience. To me, this is the most critical and important piece of the puzzle.
Once this is decided, let’s talk tech : )). The engineering teams need to understand the whys and whats. The lesser the abstraction, the better. The more you realize why you should work on a particular feature/enhancement, the better. It makes it a lot simpler when you understand the impact and utility of what you are building. End of the day you are building for the customer, so it only makes sense when you can resonate with their requirements.
Of course the engineering process is iterative — AGILE. It goes through the SDLC and did I mention, on an average 40% of the time is spent on development while 60% on testing. The latter is of utmost importance. You definitely don’t want to ship bugs!
But we are humans after all, how of much of this is can be avoided, I will attribute it to the creativity of the development and testing teams : ))
Now we deliver the feature to the customer, the customer success and post sales teams continuously work to ensure the customer is happy and satisfied at every instant, for you want them to come back next year and renew their subscription, right ?The engineering and support teams are always available to offer any kind of assistance and ensure no technical difficulties/bugs are faced.
And this happens on repeat 🔁
It is complex, the machinery. An ideal state is for the business to be self-sustaining, earn > burn, isn’t it ?
And this state takes time. Companies raise money, VCs and accelerators are the centre of this ecosystem. Profitability is where we all want to be, it’s the northstar ⭐
On a personal note there are times when it is very overwhelming, but guess it’s a part of the process too. Witnessing this process is a humbling experience and I am extremely grateful.
I continue to run/swim/cycle and work on strengthening. This is non-negotiable and absolutely essential to ensure sustainability in the long run. Besides, Bangalore traffic is a nightmare, but the reach-early-leave-late paradigm has been working the best!