With the rapidly changing landscape of IT and business, having the right line-of-business (LOB) software is becoming more and more important to keep on top. In this article, we’re going to take a look at the ins-and-outs of software design, and aim to answer the question: Do you need to be a genius programmer to build high quality, line-of-business software? 

You may think it’s an obvious answer. Surely, without in-depth programming knowledge and know-how, where would you even begin with designing line-of-business software? But the clue’s in the name. If you don’t know what your business actually needs, how will you decide what exactly you want the software to do? 

The short answer, then, is a resounding no. Designing line-of-business software isn’t about knowing your way around the ins-and-outs of deep C++ script, or being able to jump into the Matrix at will. It’s instead about having an in-depth knowledge of your business requirements, and applying them to the design of a program.

A genius programmer can certainly make headway when it comes to designing software - they are a genius after all - but without knowing exactly what you need the specific software to do, you’ll probably just end up with a catch-all piece of tech that will need constant attention and development as your business requirements take shape. And we all know how that ends up... (the dreaded spaghetti code… *shudder*). 

Therefore, knowing exactly what you need the software to do before it comes to the build will put you in far greater stead than just rushing headlong into the nitty-gritty world of code. In much a similar way to choosing what software to use, it’s ironically more difficult - and arguably more important - to analyse your business and design a system around exactly what you need it to do, rather than actually programming and coding one.

As such, a tightly-scoped, simple program can actually deliver far more of a benefit than a genius-ly complex piece of software that’s able to simulate entire worlds, whilst also washing your dishes. Although - to be fair - that would be quite useful. But it certainly wouldn’t be cheap, and would probably take a good few thousand years to design.

Heading back to reality for a hot second, a little bit of both never did any harm, sure. But the point here is that this is software for business. And that means ROI, UX, UI and everything in between. As such, it’s probably best to let Mr. Business Whizz run wild before you even dip your toes in the type of code you want to use. That way, when your local tech person gets to work, you have a clear plan of exactly what’s needed; leading to a tightly scoped and efficient technological wonder, rather than a wild, untamed beast. 

So, in conclusion, the ultimate dream would be some sort of robotic business-whizz-programmer-genius-hybrid, but if you don’t have one of those to hand: know your business before you sow your code, and you’re well on the right track to getting your business running like clockwork. 

That sounded quite profound, didn’t it?

Need any help designing LOB software? We bring all the Business Whizz-dom you’ll need. We have a wealth of management consulting experience - but are also competent programmers. Go with us, and you get the best of both worlds. Check out our website for more information.