The Hidden Cost of 'Ready. Fire. Aim'

In software development, we have a rule: Never deploy code without testing it first.

Every piece of functionality gets tested to make sure it works as expected before customers ever see it.

Yet in business, we constantly "deploy" new processes, hire new people, and launch new initiatives without any systematic testing whatsoever.

Then we wonder why things go sideways.

Here's what software testing teaches us about business:

Step-by-Step Debugging in software lets us review it line-by-line to make sure it works. This is the same as Real-Time Process Observation in business.

• In software: "Let me pause execution and see exactly what's happening at each step"

• In business: "Let me walk through this process in real-time and verify what's actually happening vs. what we think is happening"

This is the business equivalent of setting breakpoints in your code. Instead of assuming your customer onboarding works smoothly, you actually observe a new customer going through each step. You slow the whole process down, manually doing it step by setp. Instead of trusting that your sales process is effective, you sit in on actual sales calls and watch where prospects get stuck.

Most business problems are like bugs that only surface when you can see the step-by-step execution, not just the final output.

Unit Tests in software let us test the individual pieces and make sure they work. This is like Process Verification in business.

• In software: "Does this specific function work correctly?"

• In business: "Does this specific process deliver the expected outcome?"

Integration Tests in software helps us make sure that the software works correctly with other parts. This is like Cross-Department Validation in business.

• In software: "Do these components work together?"

• In business: "Do these departments hand off work smoothly?"

User Acceptance Tests make sure that the changes to the software match what the user needs and can use. This is like Customer Experience Validation.

• In software: "Does this meet what users actually need?"

• In business: "Does this create the experience customers expect?"

The most revealing parallel: Regression Testing

In software, every time you make a change, you re-run all your existing tests to make sure you didn't break something else.

How often do you do this in business?

• When you change your pricing model, do you test that your sales process still works?

• When you hire new team members, do you verify that existing workflows still function?

• When you update your customer service approach, do you check that it doesn't conflict with other touchpoints?

Most businesses skip this step—and pay for it later.

Here's what systematic business testing looks like:

Before implementing any change:

1. Define what success looks like (clear, measurable criteria)

2. Test with a small subset first (limited risk)

3. Check that existing processes still work (regression testing)

4. Get feedback from actual users/customers (user acceptance)

5. Only then roll out broadly

Create feedback loops that act like automated tests:

• Regular check-ins to verify processes are working
• Metrics that alert you when something breaks
• Customer touchpoints that surface issues quickly

The companies that excel at this treat their business operations like a software system—with the same discipline around testing and validation.

Imagine implementing 'business unit tests' for an onboarding process. Instead of hoping new procedures would work, you could test each step with real scenarios before rolling them out company-wide.

The potential result? You might catch major issues that would otherwise frustrate dozens of new customers.

The key insight: Not all business failures are strategy failures—some of them are implementation failures that could have been caught with better testing.

Questions to consider:

• What's one process in your business that you're currently running "in production" without proper testing?

• How might you create a simple test to validate it's working as intended?

Remember: Just like in software, the cost of fixing issues after deployment is exponentially higher than catching them during testing.