I want to share 3 more technical points that I really don’t like when solution providers use them as a main argument to sell their solutions.
I am speaking in general: this is valid in the same way for providers of fiscal solutions, e-commerce solutions, POS solutions, or any other solutions for retailers.
1. “API-first” strategy
With “API-first”, they want to say that they designed their solution so it can be integrated very easily into other systems. That is fine. Good integration is important.
But integration itself is not the real value.
The real value is the function, the feature, the business benefit.
If a solution does not have strong and innovative features, the “best” API in the world will not help.
Solution providers know this. That is why, for me, the right approach is “value first”, not “API-first”.
I understand that creating real value is more difficult and needs more creativity. But this is the point:
retailers need solutions that generate value for their business, not only nice APIs.
2. “Embedded compliance”
With “embedded compliance”, solution providers want to say that they took care of compliance from the very beginning and that they designed their solution with compliance in mind.
The problem is: embedding something often means creating a monolith. Then any change of that embedded part becomes a big struggle.
Instead of being an advantage, it becomes a hidden risk with hidden costs.
The better way is to have a good architecture with the right components that can be changed or replaced easily when laws or rules change.
3. “Automatic updates”
To show the benefits of cloud-based and fully automated solutions, many providers advertise automatic updates.
They say something like:
“If requirements change, we implement them and deploy them automatically. You can relax; we do the job.”
In large, complex retail systems, uncontrolled updates are never an option.
Just imagine a typical store IT landscape, with many connected systems, and then imagine an automatic update running without control. I would not want to be responsible for the consequences.
Without a lot of testing, nobody can know what even a small update can cause.
What we tell our customers
When we advise our customers about the right solutions, we tell them:
- You need solutions that create value, not just solutions that fulfil a checklist of requirements.
- Do not deeply embed things that will probably change, because changing them later can become a horror story.
- Run only controlled updates, and do it step by step:
first on one POS, then on a few POS, then on one store, then on a few stores, and only then on all stores.
Only if you increase the load step by step can you see the weak points of the solution.
In the end, it is a game of statistics: the more transactions you run, the higher the chance that you will find the critical bugs.
These are real-life hacks from global international retail projects – and they are the things that give you peaceful nights.