The user experience of cakes
How British tea and cakes drove the digital Enterprise Resource Planning introduction story. The role of cakes can be used by storytellers to engage decision-makers and point to the return on investment from UX. A sweet tale.
Cake is a popular storytelling device in the enterprise UX world, and why not? The genesis of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and automation were in 250 tea and cakes shops in the UK after WWII, thanks to the J Lyons catering company’s LEO computer.
The ERP user experience (UX) has since evolved in ways that tell a tasty story about how innovation in the enterprise keeps the entire business sweet. The LEO computer delivered a performance for Lyons that manual clerical work could not.
Our attitude was that computing was not about bean-counting and the mere automation of processes — it was about extracting value for the business. (Source)
The cake ERP story is a reminder that end-user satisfaction and business productivity are two key messages decision-makers want to hear.
A simple, mobile, engaging, and integrated cloud UX is the way to bake ROI into digital investments. UX is a competitive must-have for business.
Manageresses could devote themselves to overseeing customer service rather than keeping on top of the clerical work as they had done before. (Source)
CIOs want to demonstrate an ROI on Cloud applications licenses, and satisfied user roles and more productive businesses are a great message to report. Plus, a device-optimized Cloud UX using APIs and responsive services offers those decision-makers a future-proof roadmap using the same business data.
A great story to tell about why UX is a differentiator and competitive winner for business. You may have others to share…
We need more cake.
(All images by Ultan Ó Broin.)
Ultan Ó Broin is a product UX consultant based in Ireland; increasing engagement in the digital health and enterprise spaces.
