3 ms·

Are all companies energy companies? While that statement broadly applies to white-collar and services, what percentage of COGS is software in manufacturing? I

by noogle 4y ago

Are all companies energy companies? While that statement broadly applies to white-collar and services, what percentage of COGS is software in manufacturing? Is it 90%? 50%? or maybe only 5%? Software is useful. That doesn't make it important enough to command high pay in a shrinking economy.

lotsofpulp 4y ago
Importance does not command high pay, supply and demand does. The point of “every business is a software business” is to imply that demand for software developers will stay abreast with supply of software developers. Edit: also, obviously, the buyer needs to be able to pay, which is sort of related to software being able to be used to advance a business’s competitiveness in the market such that the business is able and willing to invest in software development
- noogle 4y ago
  So it's all about actual numbers (supply and demand curve). The case of energy (and other industries like transportation and construction) shows that this supply-demand curve be weak enough to lower employee salary. Is there any argument that software won't behave similarly? Speaking about productivity, software is far from a guarantee of increased productivity - see the case of EHR in hospitals.
  - lotsofpulp 4y ago
    > Speaking about productivity, software is far from a guarantee of increased productivity - see the case of EHR in hospitals. Was this conclusively measured? I imagine there are fewer errors or better decisions made due to quick and easy availability of health history. I trust auditable, easily legible notes over chicken scratch handwriting faxed from office to office in previous years. With EHR, I can also catch healthcare providers writing notes about stuff that did not happen in the visit to cover their ass, although I imagine many doctors do this because a lot of the minutiae is a waste of time that just serves to help in case of lawsuits or billing disputes. But in any case, I would rather have access to that info than not in case in need to dispute it.
    - noogle 4y ago
      Broadly (and of course there are a lot of nuances), studies do not show substantial effect[0], which is a failure of the software considering the promise and the resources invested in this transition. Tens of billions of dollars invested in the transition, which could be used for other interventions. The broad economy is different from pure-software companies. Software can eventually only manage information - but many businesses eventually operate on physical things, where people matter much more than software. 0. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33441368/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33441368/
jleyank 4y ago
The critical question being missed is not “how many businesses need software”, but “how many businesses need developers”.I suspect the former will end up being way larger than the latter as time passes.
- TheSpiceIsLife 4y ago
  It already is that way, always has been, always will be. One would have to live in a tech hub working in a tech company to think the inverse is true. The overwhelming majority of businesses have no use for software developers. Plenty of uses for software. Here in Australia over 99% of businesses are SMEs, and the overwhelming majority of those core business is not software development. I personally know exactly one web developer, so I know about forty car mechanics, three thousand builders, ninety seven plumbers, eighteen diesel mechanics, seventy three plasters, eight hundred fencers, twenty four tilers, sixty four concerters, ten thousand low voltage electricians, fifty five high voltage electricians, seven dentists, four thousand chefs and kitchen staff, eight thousand hospital fkorr staff, four hundred doctors, two glaziers... to one person who writes code.

by noogle 4y ago

lotsofpulp 4y ago

Importance does not command high pay, supply and demand does. The point of “every business is a software business” is to imply that demand for software developers will stay abreast with supply of software developers. Edit: also, obviously, the buyer needs to be able to pay, which is sort of related to software being able to be used to advance a business’s competitiveness in the market such that the business is able and willing to invest in software development

noogle 4y ago
So it's all about actual numbers (supply and demand curve). The case of energy (and other industries like transportation and construction) shows that this supply-demand curve be weak enough to lower employee salary. Is there any argument that software won't behave similarly? Speaking about productivity, software is far from a guarantee of increased productivity - see the case of EHR in hospitals.
- lotsofpulp 4y ago
  > Speaking about productivity, software is far from a guarantee of increased productivity - see the case of EHR in hospitals. Was this conclusively measured? I imagine there are fewer errors or better decisions made due to quick and easy availability of health history. I trust auditable, easily legible notes over chicken scratch handwriting faxed from office to office in previous years. With EHR, I can also catch healthcare providers writing notes about stuff that did not happen in the visit to cover their ass, although I imagine many doctors do this because a lot of the minutiae is a waste of time that just serves to help in case of lawsuits or billing disputes. But in any case, I would rather have access to that info than not in case in need to dispute it.
  - noogle 4y ago
    Broadly (and of course there are a lot of nuances), studies do not show substantial effect[0], which is a failure of the software considering the promise and the resources invested in this transition. Tens of billions of dollars invested in the transition, which could be used for other interventions. The broad economy is different from pure-software companies. Software can eventually only manage information - but many businesses eventually operate on physical things, where people matter much more than software. 0. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33441368/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33441368/

jleyank 4y ago

The critical question being missed is not “how many businesses need software”, but “how many businesses need developers”.I suspect the former will end up being way larger than the latter as time passes.

TheSpiceIsLife 4y ago
It already is that way, always has been, always will be. One would have to live in a tech hub working in a tech company to think the inverse is true. The overwhelming majority of businesses have no use for software developers. Plenty of uses for software. Here in Australia over 99% of businesses are SMEs, and the overwhelming majority of those core business is not software development. I personally know exactly one web developer, so I know about forty car mechanics, three thousand builders, ninety seven plumbers, eighteen diesel mechanics, seventy three plasters, eight hundred fencers, twenty four tilers, sixty four concerters, ten thousand low voltage electricians, fifty five high voltage electricians, seven dentists, four thousand chefs and kitchen staff, eight thousand hospital fkorr staff, four hundred doctors, two glaziers... to one person who writes code.