Entrepreneurial Software Innovation
Authors
Thilemann, Stefan Mailund ; Kaysen, Anders Christian ; Mikkelsen, Frederik Bruhn
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2016
Submitted on
2016-06-08
Abstract
This thesis examines how to establish a software-intensive business without letting short development cycles come at the expense of software quality. Drawing on experiences with Lean Startup and the Early Stage Software Startup Development Model (ESSSDM), the authors observe that these approaches do not emphasize the software development process and often prioritize speed over quality. The thesis proposes Entrepreneurial Software Innovation (ESI), a model that bridges Software Innovation and Software Entrepreneurship by combining sound software design principles with a persistent focus on the relationship between product, customers, and business. ESI leverages Essence to keep product and customer needs in view, extends the MVP notion to include idea validation and low-fidelity prototypes, and introduces “branching” as a way to reach adjacent customer segments through minor product changes supported by modular design. The model is developed and illustrated through the Gymnastbillet solution for a Danish sports organization (DGI Nordjylland), which saw over 1,700 users during a four-month test, and through lessons learned from a prior mass-market attempt (Juvono) that failed to attract early adopters. The findings suggest that ESI enables rapid iterations without sacrificing quality, while branching supports growth by exploiting contingencies to serve similar customers with limited modifications.
Dette speciale undersøger, hvordan man kan etablere en softwareintensiv forretning, uden at kort udviklingstid sker på bekostning af softwarekvalitet. Med udgangspunkt i erfaringer fra Lean Startup og Early Stage Software Startup Development Model (ESSSDM) konstaterer forfatterne, at disse tilgange ikke betoner selve softwareudviklingsprocessen og ofte prioriterer hastighed over kvalitet. Specialet foreslår derfor Entrepreneurial Software Innovation (ESI), en model der bygger bro mellem Software Innovation og Software Entrepreneurship ved at kombinere fokus på gode softwaredesignprincipper med et vedvarende blik for relationen mellem produkt, kunder og forretning. Modellen trækker bl.a. på Essence for at fastholde produkt- og kundeorientering, udvider MVP-begrebet til også at omfatte idéafprøvning og lavfidelitetsprototyper, og introducerer “branching” som metode til at udvide kundesegmenter gennem mindre produktændringer, understøttet af modulært design. ESI er udviklet og illustreret gennem arbejdet med Gymnastbillet, en løsning til en dansk sportsorganisation (DGI Nordjylland), der opnåede over 1700 registrerede brugere i en fire måneders testperiode, samt gennem læring fra et tidligere massemarkedsinitiativ (Juvono), der ikke tiltrak tilstrækkelige tidlige adoptører. Specialets fund peger på, at ESI kan understøtte hurtige iterationer uden at gå på kompromis med kvalitet, samtidig med at branching muliggør udvidelse til lignende kunder med begrænsede ændringer.
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