3 ms·

Isn’t this a prime opportunity for disruption? These kinds of stories seem to crop up now and then. Is it inevitable that a startup will offer a service for cre

by dom96 5y ago

Isn’t this a prime opportunity for disruption? These kinds of stories seem to crop up now and then. Is it inevitable that a startup will offer a service for creating custom solution for such repetitive manual tasks at a fraction of the price? $90k per annum leaves a lot of margin.

WesolyKubeczek 5y ago
Examples where computers are actually made to save routine manual labor seem to be few and far between. Mostly, computers of today are a form of nuisance (as described in this sad blog post[0]). These stories could have happened in the 1980s, and be just as impactful. You would think we're long past this, but it's AD 2022 and whole industries seem to only start noticing that automation exists, is possible, and is relevant to them. I think that in many regards, automation is more or less fully used only in the IT industry itself, and maybe a couple more where computers actually are front and center. A lot of others, after having bitter experience with computers, seem more skeptical, maybe justly so. Startups like you say seem to crop up now and then, but it seems to me that while you could have some dolce vita as an individual, this approach won't make a company rich. [0] https://tonsky.me/blog/tech-sucks/ https://tonsky.me/blog/tech-sucks/
patrickk 5y ago
It’s difficult to disrupt companies or even whole industries that are stuffed with busy work, and had management completely uninterested in efficiency. Especially prevalent in some (non US, non Tech, high barriers to entry) work cultures that value jobs for the boys and value relationships over merit or efficiency. I’ve seen countless processes that were locked in place to protect the status of prima Donnas in Legal or Finance, which must rubber stamp projects or infrastructure requests. So nothing gets done except what suits those inside the broken process.

by dom96 5y ago

WesolyKubeczek 5y ago

Examples where computers are actually made to save routine manual labor seem to be few and far between. Mostly, computers of today are a form of nuisance (as described in this sad blog post[0]). These stories could have happened in the 1980s, and be just as impactful. You would think we're long past this, but it's AD 2022 and whole industries seem to only start noticing that automation exists, is possible, and is relevant to them. I think that in many regards, automation is more or less fully used only in the IT industry itself, and maybe a couple more where computers actually are front and center. A lot of others, after having bitter experience with computers, seem more skeptical, maybe justly so. Startups like you say seem to crop up now and then, but it seems to me that while you could have some dolce vita as an individual, this approach won't make a company rich. [0] https://tonsky.me/blog/tech-sucks/ https://tonsky.me/blog/tech-sucks/

patrickk 5y ago

It’s difficult to disrupt companies or even whole industries that are stuffed with busy work, and had management completely uninterested in efficiency. Especially prevalent in some (non US, non Tech, high barriers to entry) work cultures that value jobs for the boys and value relationships over merit or efficiency. I’ve seen countless processes that were locked in place to protect the status of prima Donnas in Legal or Finance, which must rubber stamp projects or infrastructure requests. So nothing gets done except what suits those inside the broken process.