Product management: put the feedback loop at the heart of IT projects.

Any IT project involves a significant portion of your company's employees. The complexity of these projects requires the implementation of a genuine product management strategy. An effective feedback loop is essential throughout the life of the application. It guarantees the effectiveness of development, the respect of the needs of end users, and therefore the adoption of new tools.

1. The feedback loop, a powerful tool for continuous improvement

The feedback loop is a feedback loop in which user feedback is used and analyzed to improve development practices. It is part of a continuous improvement process. During a project, the feedback loop ensures a gain in efficiency. It also makes it possible to optimize the next project thanks to feedback.

2. Optimize development

Whether it's about develop dedicated software from A to Z or to customize a commercial application, the work of developers is essential to ensure the proper functioning of the IT solution. This includes a testing phase by end users. It makes it possible to detect bugs in real situations and to improve the ergonomics of tools in order to guarantee their future adoption.

In this test phase, effective communication between the testers and the IT department must be ensured by setting up a feedback management tool. Each user feedback should be used not only to meet the immediate need, but also to better anticipate new requests. The virtuous circle of the feedback loop is then set in place.

3. Ensure the match between needs and proposed solutions

Feedback from end users ensures that the tools offered correspond to their needs. This information is crucial in the development phase. They remain relevant during deployment, and throughout the duration of use of the application. Indeed, practices and needs can change. In addition, collaborative intelligence may cause new demands to emerge, and involve modifying certain tools or creating new ones.

This requires a permanent dialogue between end users, managers and IT. The feedback loop plays its full role in this strategy of continuous improvement. User feedback allows developers to better identify their needs and practices and to take them into account effectively in the development of new tools.

4. Control the level of adoption by users

Feedback is not only of technical interest. They also reflect the degree of adoption of software tools by end users. Feedback that indicates a poor appropriation of the functionalities should also be included in the feedback loop.

This valuable feedback must have immediate answers (redo training, improve user documentation, or even modify the tool to make it more ergonomic and adapted). But it should also improve communication for the next stages of deployment, as well as for future projects. Thus, feedback allows continuous improvement of development and implementation practices for new applications.

In your product management strategy, the feedback loop is central. So do not hesitate to set up a feedback management tool which will allow IT and end users to contribute together to the success of your new applications!