Simplicity must have a reference point

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I spent years helping financial institutions to transition from manual pen and paper forms and accounting processes to digital banking systems.

The new systems would simplify and automate work for people.

Work that was done over several weeks could be done at the click of a button.

We often faced resistance before or during implementation, and it was often from the people that stood to benefit the most from the changes.

But here's the thing about simplicity: it must always have a reference point.

From one perspective, there were obvious benefits once changes were made and processes were simplified.

Taking another perspective - from those that were resistant - learning new systems, updated workflows, new internal structures, policies, and reporting processes does not appear to simplify things in the short term.

There is a simplicity in the status quo - nothing changes.

The most successful projects were those with simplicity and clarity on the change process, and simplicity as an end goal. Communication was key.