This is going to sound crazy to the old guard enterprise software enthusiasts out there. Ready? It’s not about more features anymore. The game has changed. The features arms race is dead. More features is increasingly taking a backseat to better functionality, a close relative of usability. This is where user adoption comes into play, a concept that’s become the focal point of the business software industry. The less features an application has, the less confusing it is and consequently, more people are willing to use it. There’s a concept – people actually using a business application and not just finding ways to work around it.

What we’ve learned is that when software achieves something valuable without being distracting or requiring hours of training, only then will it live up to its potential (those enterprise guys call this concept “return on investment”). Let’s face it: it’s usually harder to do simple things exceedingly well, than to just pile up features. The 80/20 rule applies here too: do well what 80 percent of your users do all the time, and you’ll create a good user experience that promotes user adoption. That’s the goal isn’t it?

Here are some tips that we put together regarding promoting adoption for applicant tracking software. These concepts can be applied to just about any technology. Say goodbye to the age of killer features. Say hello to the age of the killer usability.

Related posts:

1. Corporate Mid-Market Applicant Tracking Software Trends: The hottest trends to watch in 2011