Software Engineering vs Kitchen Design: Why Every Team Needs a Chief Reminder Officer

 


If you’ve ever renovated a kitchen, you know how quickly it can spiral.

There are so many features you can add — an extra prep sink, hidden spice drawers, a built-in espresso bar. But unless you decide what’s truly important to you, your bill will go through the roof… and you’ll still end up missing what you really wanted.

Software engineering is no different.

Every sprint, there’s a new feature you could add. Every week, there’s a shiny new framework, integration, or AI plugin. Without clear priorities, you’ll burn your budget and your team’s focus chasing “nice to have” ideas while the things that actually matter to users remain half-baked.

1. Over-Designing for the Future

In both kitchens and software, the future can be a trap.
 You can’t keep up with every gadget on the market. Just because your neighbor has a double oven with Wi-Fi doesn’t mean you need one. Similarly, just because another company is bragging about its AI-driven workflow doesn’t mean it’s right for your product.

Technology envy is real. But long-term success comes from designing for your users, your constraints, and your roadmap, not from keeping up with the digital Joneses.

2. Cool vs. Functional

Style matters, but usability wins.

In kitchen design, the distance between the sink, stove, and fridge is called the “work triangle.” If those are too far apart, every meal becomes a chore. The same goes for software; if it takes five clicks to do something your users do every day, your beautiful UI won’t save you.

I recently met a founder of a well-established startup who admitted they were redoing their entire product to fix the user experience and return to the core user journey. The tech worked fine, but the flow was broken.

Design should serve the user, not impress the designer.

3. Know Your Values and Priorities

Whether you’re designing a kitchen or a product, you need written values to guide trade-offs. Here are a few that apply to both:

  • Low barrier to entry

    • Software: Users should be able to sign up and use the product immediately.

    • Kitchen: You should be able to move around easily, access everything, and cook without needing a manual.

  • Front and center

    • Software: Your product should be visible and valuable wherever users are, not hidden behind menus or integrations.

    • Kitchen: Do you want an open concept with everything displayed, or a minimalist layout that hides clutter? Decide early.

  • Personas matter

    • Software: Who is your ideal customer profile?

    • Kitchen: Are you an avid cook, or is the microwave your MVP? I once met someone with a stunning antique oven purely for decoration.

These principles help you make decisions faster and align the team around what truly matters.

4. The Role of the Chief Reminder Officer

This is where the Chief Reminder Officer (CRO) comes in.

Every organization needs someone, ideally everyone, who constantly brings the team back to its original principles. The CRO doesn’t create new priorities; they remind everyone of the existing ones. They make sure each design choice, each sprint, each shiny new idea passes through the lens of “does this align with our values?”

In healthy teams, this role becomes distributed.
 You’ll know you’ve succeeded as a leader when more and more of your team members act like CROs, reminding each other of what matters most, and keeping the work aligned with the vision.

Whether you’re designing a kitchen or building a product, the goal isn’t to add more. It’s to make what matters work beautifully.

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