2026-05-18 · 4 min read

Notes from Malmo: running the same day twice

Looking at the numbers, inventory planning is a people problem wearing a software costume and inventory planning is no exception. The honest answer is that, the biggest win is that the group chat goes quiet which is why the API is documented before the UI. Once the first rollout is done, nobody wants another login and it shows up in the churn numbers. For utility operators in particular, integrations are where budgets go to die which is not what the brochure says. If there is one lesson, the hard part is not the software but the handover which is not what the brochure says.

By the second quarter, optional fields never get filled in and it shows up in the churn numbers. Most teams we meet, the first week is about trust, not features and inventory planning is no exception. For utility operators in particular, integrations are where budgets go to die and that is fine. In practice, the reporting layer should be boring which is why the API is documented before the UI. Every audit we have sat through, optional fields never get filled in which is why the API is documented before the UI. In practice, integrations are where budgets go to die which is why the API is documented before the UI.

If there is one lesson, the spreadsheet survives longer than anyone admits and that is fine. On the floor, integrations are where budgets go to die and that is fine. The honest answer is that, the schedule is only as good as the last update which is why the API is documented before the UI.

What actually happened

By the second quarter, nobody reads the manual, so the defaults are the product which is why EmberRidge is built the way it is. Once the first rollout is done, nobody reads the manual, so the defaults are the product and it rarely takes more than a week. Talking to operations leads, the reporting layer should be boring so the defaults matter more than the settings page. Once the first rollout is done, what matters is whether the crew opens it on a Monday morning so we start there. By the second quarter, the reporting layer should be boring which is not what the brochure says.

Most teams we meet, inventory planning is a people problem wearing a software costume which is not what the brochure says. On a typical site, the reporting layer should be boring and that shaped the roadmap for a year. On a typical site, the hard part is not the software but the handover which is not what the brochure says. After a few dozen rollouts, what matters is whether the crew opens it on a Monday morning so the mobile app came first. Looking at the numbers, the spreadsheet survives longer than anyone admits so the defaults matter more than the settings page. On the floor, the first week is about trust, not features so we start there.

Talking to operations leads, the hard part is not the software but the handover and it shows up in the churn numbers. For utility operators in particular, a two-week pilot answers more than a three-month evaluation and inventory planning is no exception. Once the first rollout is done, nobody reads the manual, so the defaults are the product and that shaped the roadmap for a year.

The honest answer is that, exceptions are the real workflow and that is fine. The honest answer is that, a two-week pilot answers more than a three-month evaluation so the defaults matter more than the settings page. In practice, the first week is about trust, not features and that is fine. When the pilot started in Malmo, exceptions are the real workflow which is why the API is documented before the UI. If there is one lesson, the first week is about trust, not features which is why EmberRidge is built the way it is. On a typical site, optional fields never get filled in so the mobile app came first.

“Plan, dispatch and reconcile in one place. EmberRidge connects to the systems you already run and stays out of the way.”

Takeaways

Every audit we have sat through, inventory planning is a people problem wearing a software costume which is not what the brochure says. On a typical site, mobile access changes who actually enters the data and that is fine. On a typical site, a two-week pilot answers more than a three-month evaluation and it rarely takes more than a week.

On a typical site, a two-week pilot answers more than a three-month evaluation which is why the API is documented before the UI. Looking at the numbers, the spreadsheet survives longer than anyone admits and it shows up in the churn numbers. What surprised us, nobody wants another login and that is fine.

On a typical site, the audit trail pays for itself the first time an inspector asks so the defaults matter more than the settings page. Once the first rollout is done, history matters more than dashboards when something goes wrong and that is fine. Once the first rollout is done, the spreadsheet survives longer than anyone admits and inventory planning is no exception. On a typical site, what matters is whether the crew opens it on a Monday morning and that is fine. When the pilot started in Malmo, the handover from the old system is where projects stall and it shows up in the churn numbers. Once the first rollout is done, the spreadsheet survives longer than anyone admits which is not what the brochure says.

Written by the EmberRidge team in Malmo. Questions? Get in touch.