Flawed human nature drives society to be intrigued (and even consumed) with the idea of “new” – believing that the newer, fancier, more complex something is, the better it must be. No matter how functional a current product or situation is, and how beneficial it is to maintain, we all have an innate desire for something fresh and exciting.
It is this exact reason why companies and designers create products the way they do. Without intention, many offerings become incredibly over-engineered, actually hurting your company, as the consumer, in multiple aspects.
This article continues to explore the “what”, “why”, and “how” of over-engineering, and explains Agility’s intentionality behind designing differently.
What is over-engineering?
We threw out the term “over-engineered”, but what does it mean? It’s simple (to understand), or by-definition, actually the exact opposite.
Over-engineering is when teams do more designing, engineering, and development to their products than is necessary and even helpful. It is loading a product with features and over-the-top capabilities.
On the surface, this creates an impressive product, but realistically, it is a harmful process that results in more losses than recognized.
Why do companies over-engineer?
Rarely would you find companies with a goal to over-engineer, but it happens frequently. So, we have to ask ourselves why.
First, businesses are tasked with beating the competition, and even their own products, to create the next best thing. Brainstorm meetings focus on what can be changed and added to make things “better”. By no means is over-engineering likely what a team sets out to do, but it is an easy repercussion to this mindset.
A long list of features and benefits automatically makes a product appealing. And as long as your marketing team can strongly construe everything your product has to offer as a series of positives, you’ve likely caught the eye of the general public.
We use these complexities to justify a new product, and research shows that society’s obsession with “new” makes it easy to snatch the dollar.
However, another reason for over-engineering is product timeline, which, on the other hand, has nothing to do with the consumer.
When companies set quick deadlines, teams might look for the fastest way out. Over-engineering to easily pass product tests is unfortunately common. Instead of designing the best option for their customer, teams will add as many features as possible and the strongest sure-to-pass components right from the start in order to easily pass testing and reduce time to market. Great for them, but not so great for their consumers who have to pay the costs. Instead, engineering should be resilient and willing to fail to ultimately succeed in creating great products.
In contrast, if there are no design constraints for budget and timeline, teams will design forever; there will always be something that can be tweaked. Before you know it, the project scope has crept, and the company has lost focus on what the goal was and who the product is for.
How does this design process hurt you?
As the consumer, you should be aware of over-engineering, and the harmful effects it has on your end of the deal.
More product features only equal more money. And when these are features you won’t ever need or use, you’re pulling together the cash for no good reason at all. Don’t let yourself over-pay for meaningless details.
However, at Agility, we believe it should not have to be your responsibility to filter out unnecessary features. Agility makes it their mission to avoid over-engineering, over-design.
Our team has set an intentional focus on user experience. No more disposable extras: Agility offers only the products that you need to simplify where you work and how you work.
So next time you make a purchase, notice what you are buying. Was that product really designed for you and your needs? Or was it designed for the competition and the company themselves? Over-engineering hurts, and we believe your business deserves better.