Much has been written about the potential conflict of interest where the professional services industry is concerned. Many have highlighted the temptation that exists when work is billed by the hour. Why be efficient when that is counter to maximizing profits?
Efficiency strongly aligns with our value of Integrity. We often share a concept with new hires: imagine the customer walking up to them every hour and placing $100 on their desk. Then ask: Did I deliver value that I can be happy about? Another perspective is to ask the employee to treat the customer’s money as if it were their own. These analogies foster a mindset of delivering excellence while also paying attention to efficiency.
Furthermore, Integrity also calls for accountability. This is why we love delivering value in small, time-boxed blocks of 2-3 weeks. We aim to make our work visible to ensure it aligns with expectations. Long deliverable timelines both greatly increase the chance of missed expectations while also not allowing for course changes as new features are revealed. We recognize that efficiency is a measure that we always have to work on, and pay attention to, and we’re committed to that.
Efficiency and excellence are not at odds. Work can be performed with excellence, but done efficiently through the wise use of time and resources. Efficiency doesn’t imply cutting corners and producing a sub-par deliverable to save money.
Embracing the rise of AI
AI technology is rapidly evolving across a wide spectrum of industries and practices. When it comes to software development, tools are maturing at an amazing rate. Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Copilot are being embedded into our development tools to provide context specific help. The most straightforward example when establishing context is the programming language. If the AI tool knows JavaScript is the programming language, it will orient responses appropriately. There’s no question that AI can provide an overall boost in efficiency, especially for those experienced enough to know what to ask for. There’s a growing body of knowledge around “prompt engineering”, that is helping us ask questions in ways to elicit high quality responses.
We’re paying attention and we fully intend to leverage this technology wisely for our clients. Are we concerned that this technology will cut into our revenue? Not at all. We believe we’ll simply offer more outstanding value for each dollar spent. Companies that adopt this tech will stand out from those who don’t.
We invite you to watch us work
Living by our values fosters trust. Over the years, we’ve cultivated strong relationships with several remarkable clients. Trust must be earned through repeated behaviors that demonstrate a genuine care for the people we work with and the value we deliver. This trust is an extremely important asset. Trust is the best marketing we could ask for.
We love being provided with an opportunity to demonstrate how we work and pay attention to efficiency and excellence. If you ask “In what ways are you paying attention to efficiency?”, we aim to always have a compelling answer at the ready.
Integrity. Excellence. People. Read other stories that shine a light on our core values.
