Picking up from my last post about stepping away from coding and coming back with a sharper perspective, I want to share one of the most valuable experiences I’ve had in bridging business and engineering: spending time with end-users in the field.
As part of my role, I visited customer locations, met with end-users, and even joined drivers on actual deliveries. Watching them interact with our product in real life was eye-opening—and it reshaped how I approach building software today.
Lessons
Real Usage ≠ Expected Usage
No matter how much planning or design we do, users often interact with applications differently than expected. On paper, workflows look clean and logical. In reality, people skip steps, create shortcuts, or use features in ways we didn’t imagine. That gap between theory and practice is where the real learning begins.
Being User-Friendly
In the field, speed and clarity matter more than clever design. Drivers juggling deliveries don’t have time to interpret complex screens or hidden features. Every extra tap can cause frustration—or mistakes. Seeing this firsthand reinforced a principle I now carry into every project: if the app isn’t simple and intuitive, it isn’t serving its purpose.
When Software Impacts Safety
Some industries have higher stakes than others. In our case, a missed propane delivery due to a system issue could mean a family without heating—or worse. Observing this made me realize that reliability isn’t just a technical requirement—it’s a human responsibility. The quality of our code can directly affect people’s lives.
Customers Over Specs
I’ve read detailed specifications that ran dozens of pages. But nothing compared to sitting down with customers, watching their routines, and hearing their frustrations directly. Those conversations revealed insights no document could capture. Great software comes from understanding people, not just requirements.
Adaptability Is Key
Even the best designs need adjustment once they meet the real world. Drivers would point out small tweaks—“This works, but…”—that made a huge difference in usability. Being open to change isn’t just good practice; it’s essential for creating software that truly fits its environment.
Final Thoughts
These lessons from the road continue to guide me as a Senior Software Engineer. They remind me that behind every feature request is a person trying to do their job better, faster, or safer.
The biggest takeaway? Technology is not the hero —people are. Our role is to create tools that empower them, not slow them down. When we keep that perspective, our work becomes more than code—it becomes a contribution to someone’s everyday life.
And that’s something every developer, analyst, or engineer can relate to: at the heart of it all, we’re not just building software—we’re building trust.
