As an engineer who has been working on a business team for a while, you’re bound to have questions. In the initial period of time, the team members all raised such doubts: how to find existing technology value in the business? After discovering the problem, how to think and initiate and then solve it? How does the final technical result tie in with the business result? A lot of times when we hear people say, “Think is not enough/think more,” what they are really saying is this. Next, ali senior front-end technology expert will talk about these three problems, he is how to solve?
How to find existing technology value in the business?
A scientist has only a limited amount of time in his life for research, yet there are countless research topics in the world. If you choose a research topic just because you find it mildly interesting, your life will end before you have time to do anything really important. — Susumu Ligenkawa
But to answer this question, we need to understand the concept of, what is a worthwhile question? As FAR as I am concerned, a problem with high degree of issue and high quality of solution is a valuable problem. A popular understanding is whether the problem exists, whether the current need to solve the problem is sufficient, and whether the corresponding solution is feasible. If you want to find this problem in your business, you must first understand the business strategy, practices, and positioning. How to do this information well is a big challenge for engineers.
First of all, most engineers are actually engaged in front-line development, and their understanding of the business may be limited to what they are doing. A lot of information is filtered through five or six hands of information, which may be a task and why to do the task. The person who makes the strategy knows the meaning behind the strategy and the information is not equal. So first we need to collect information, then we need to organize and summarize, and finally we need to analyze the problem.
Let’s start with gathering information
It’s kind of like information science in information science. Collect information on the best way is to place business leader KO will, various KO to ride the strategic dismantling and the thinking behind the whole comb after preaching to BU or department of the students, although we did not personally involved in the process of brain storm, but also to have certain understanding of the thinking behind, remember, must remember to highlight notes.
After obtaining first-hand information, we are going to comb through simple started collecting external information, finishing the whole knowledge context, here I often use is ali study (study business treasure ali, technology treasure ATA, note: ali internal learning platform), can obtain a lot of business related to share, of course can also collect a lot of external channels. For example, this data [1] was collected externally, and several key words can be obtained, such as digital technology enabling the travel industry and we are not OTA, which should be collected into the information pool. Of course, all I mentioned above are sources of information. For specific definitions of information collection, you can refer to the encyclopedia [2] and learn the methodology in accordance with the encyclopedia so as to find a suitable method for yourself. In short, we collect this information as product managers [3]. We also encourage more communication with students from different fields and BU, not limited to offline bullshit communication and online question asking (it is suggested to read the answer in Zhihu about how to ask questions [4] and how to conduct effective social communication [5]).
To analyze problems
The information we get from different sources is scattered. How can we process it into our own thinking system? First of all, information can’t just be stacked, we have to sort it out through different portals. MECE rules can be used to think and disassemble, so as to grasp the whole through classification without omission and repetition, list the brain map and logical tree, and finally match the information of the logical tree with the demand scene. The demand scene can be restored through different entrances of C-end and B-end. In this process, certain methodologies (deductive reasoning and inductive reasoning) can be combined to refine the problems and challenges and help us understand the strategy of BU. Meanwhile, we can also disassemble the strategy into corresponding projects from our own perspective. Last year, for example, I personally analyzed that one of the main problems faced by Feizu in the whole C-end was that the flow pattern was too single, the maturity of the b-end supply chain was not enough, which led to the failure to provide more substantial experience services to merchants, and the lack of cross-classification of Feizu was due to the business isolation of various vertical businesses.
How do you connect problem discovery to implementation
We can’t just take these three problems and start working on them, but we need to refine the core value of the problem. Otherwise, it is very easy to put in a huge amount of work, the final technical output and business results do not connect, so it is said that think not by brute force, work not by physical strength. Where do you want to see the work related to your character? In terms of end-to-end, the advantage is that it is close to the product side and close to the user side, so the basic presentation mode can be abstracted through the product prototype to form a system. Taking the flow system construction as an example, we need to layer users. A more reasonable way can use several classical models, such as RFM, AIPL, AARRR and their variants, so as to precipitate the technical platform or product to undertake. For example, in the construction of traffic system, after thinking about stratification, we divided the users according to the mentality, and divided the domain into scattered users outside Ali domain and internal users within Ali domain, so as to specifically design two platform products.
See the dragon in the field, li see adults
As the initiator of the project, we should pay attention to every link. So first we need to find the corresponding business side to “sell” our thinking. The first thing you need to know in order to find like-minded people to work with is who are your business people? What are they responsible for? My method is relatively simple. I directly look at the division of functions of the operation, and I need to know the direction of the person I am responsible for and the KPI he is responsible for. In addition, always go with your PD, usually the most direct partner is the one who can help you with the business and technical connection.
Once the upstream and downstream people are found, start KO preparation and prioritize the needs. Because with limited resources, what do we do first? Do the less important things later and prioritize the core features of your product. Usually the top priority of the platform product is the functionality used by the operation, so confirm with the partner which features they think are most important.
Stand on the shoulders of giants to do innovation
Alibaba is already very big, we believe that every idea will be thought of, so try not to repeat the same road to tread the same hole, the same is true for small companies using open source technology. Then, at the beginning of the project, if it is a platform, we need to remove the core function first, which should be determined by whether the group has someone working on it or has a mature plan, so as to avoid repeating the wheel and solve your most urgent core problems in the fastest and most direct way. The simplest and most direct method is to search ATA (Ali internal technology forum) and Language bird (internal students usually have the habit of knowledge record), break down the key words to find the key people to do things. You must believe that you are by no means the first person to think of this problem. Some general problems must have been provided by general services within the group, and even if not, there will be more mature solutions.
If there is no molding plan within the group, this direction also belongs to the forefront of the industry. If you encounter similar problems, you can first see if there is a possibility to circumvent them. If you can’t circumvent them, you can try to find a basic team suitable for solving the problem to cooperate and build together. Is there any external payment scheme that can be purchased and used for reference? In short, we must ensure that the business wins first. Because the business engineer is thinking about what value you can bring to the business, and your core value is not dealing with very complex technical problems, but what incremental value you can bring to the business with your technology. Similarly, the use of a certain technology or model pattern to solve very complex business problems, and is a universal value of technology, which is also the value that business engineers bring to the business.
Based on the present, look to the future
Know a few, its god!
To look at the present, we should look at the future. Not only technology but also industry should look at the future. Standing in the present thinking can solve the biggest problems encountered by the business at present, thinking about the opportunity to bring the business to overtake in the curve in the future. For example, if Flying Pig wants to catch up with competitors in the same industry, we can’t compare with them in terms of resource input, and the best result may be to catch up with them. Therefore, we urgently need to find the key buttons for future industry competition, focus time and energy on the key nodes, and break through with the global Fun strategy. Therefore, flying pigs should also be prepared for internationalization, and there are also predecessors’ technical experience in this field for us to learn from. So in order for us to focus more on our business, we can say that the platformization of last year has laid a very good foundation for our business.
How does the final technical result tie in with the business result
In fact, this subtitle is a bit of a false proposition. If we have a clear understanding of the business at the beginning and focus on the target without deviating from the course, it is unlikely that we will fail to get the business results. Finally, there is only one question: how to reflect the technical value while getting the business results?
From my own point of view, I am often asked by my classmates, in business development, repeating the wheel will be challenged, but everything has been done by others, what is our value? Until I will answer, “gay development technical team has been in deep foundation engineering/technical field, they also need to pay attention to from the technical value to the business value of transition and cohesion, essentially a lack of business scenarios, if we work with them to form a complementary, both got the business results at the same time also can get some experience from the own technology growth”.
But when I thought back on the conversation, there were a lot of questions. From the perspective of business engineers, the core we should focus on is to ensure that the business wins first. If we fail to achieve this goal, it is easy to become engineers themselves. So what we need on the business side is to have a technical vision, to be able to see what other teams in the group or external teams are doing, and to communicate actively to make it a win-win situation. If no one else is doing it, we should do it. Someone should stand up and see if the input-output ratio is reasonable? These are the valuable questions that we talked about in the beginning that have a high degree of issue and a high quality of solution. Is this problem common to other teams in the group, and can we bring value to them if we solve it? Of course, combined with the problem of finding the value of existing technology in the business mentioned above, there is a relatively clear answer here. The most important thing is to think clearly about Why before doing, and do the most correct thing. Once this is done, the business value of solving the problem is naturally and clearly identified. So the best engineers have to understand the product.
And for the future
As an aside, some of the students in the group will ask me whether the front end of the business will be obsolete in the future. Because what we’re doing lowcode/nocode is killing ourselves. In fact, this kind of thinking is caused by not thinking from the perspective of the group’s future development, that is, the butt is too small, and the pessimism and worry caused by not reviewing the front-end development process from the perspective of the whole front-end field.
In terms of the current direction, we still need to think about how to solve the problem of low-quality code construction and inefficient repetitive work that occupy most of the energy of engineers, so as to liberate the energy of engineers and improve the overall research and development efficiency of the group. Another level from the front end of the location of the past in the system stratification always belongs to the application layer, is the top/show/rendering, the appearance of the application layer in the past few decades after the constantly changing and evolving, also from the earliest professional GUI after engineers to web front-end/client r&d engineers, also has experienced the era of flash engineers among this, During this period, the application layer/presentation layer is always changing, so the front end students always feel that they are always learning new knowledge. However, this development process is in fact a law to follow, the so-called change is inseparable from the same, although the application layer is constantly changing but nothing more than two directions in the development, one is the improvement of engineering efficiency (engineering perspective), one is graphics and image research (user perspective). There is also a very complex and huge tree of knowledge in these two general directions, and it is still being extended. At the same time, with the rise of machine learning and the improvement of hardware performance, network bandwidth and people’s upgrading of visual presentation equipment, it is possible to bring another round of technology shuffle, and then again in both directions. So from this point of view the front-end of the future is not going to die maybe it’s going to exist in a different form, but engineers who don’t learn are going to die.
The last
Finally, I would like to say that when you come to a new business, do not rush to take these two results (business and technology), the so-called “hidden dragon do not use”. We should first look at the position of the business in the group and how it relates to other businesses. We should collect information and problems, carry out in-depth work with the problems, and fill up the pain points of the business through information exchange with others. First collect questions, do while thinking, first settle down to do business projects. To have a missile type of thinking, that is, no matter what, work first and then. In the action to achieve intelligent navigation, lock and track the target, according to the actual situation to correct their own path, until hitting the target.
As a matter of fact, I have written a lot of articles to sort out and summarize the methodology of how I do things. I also say that it is best not to let the business push you, but to make sure that you take the business with you. This “belt” may initially be a sense of business going in the direction you understand after understanding the way of business operation, but after long-term training, this part can actually be implemented. Finally, it is really you who lead the industry change through technological innovation and finally drive the business forward. , of course, these are my three years of experience to ali, although before to have also worked in 78, but before ali growing much faster than the growth of, and also is only three years was a “new man”, so also give yourself a message here, hope that after five years, ten years I think will rise to another level. At the same time, you are also welcome to pat/comment, ORIGINALLY I was afraid to post to everyone that pat, need encouragement, but later I also found that encouragement is the most difficult to find problems, which will lead to not find their own blind spots and blind areas in thinking, lack of experience value on the road of growth, so I encourage everyone to communicate more.
The last of the last to recommend related books, also may be for you in the above several not to more detailed study, hope to help: “the pyramid principle”, the McKinsey weapon taught me thinking “, “thinking, fast and slow”, “influence”, “self-control” and “agile development”.
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