We love research. Since the very beginning of the Auvenir project, we’ve tried to put that front and center in our minds.
In our last blog, we talked about the unique product roadmapping process we’ve created at Auvenir, and we’ve previously discussed embracing the audit of the future.
Why build something if it doesn’t meet the exact needs of the users we seek to impress? For us, that meant going deep on audit functionality because we realized what was missing in the market was a full end-to-end audit solution. Everyone we spoke to was combining 3-5 different applications to get the job done.
We have created relationships with content providers and spent over 60,000 hours talking directly to auditors to design an intelligent system that would automate the tedious tasks and give them the tools they needed to be more efficient while increasing the quality of their work. They needed a solution that provides client collaboration, analytics, customizable digitized working papers, with the ability to complete audits, reviews, and compilations, all in a single easy-to-use platform. So, we built it - all of it. We were ready to tell the world that we had a comprehensive cloud-based audit solution!
But of course, the research isn’t done, after all, Auvenir is a living breathing ever-evolving platform.
This week, we’re talking to customers about new and more powerful features that will come to life in future releases. However, while we were looking forward, one of our first customers told us to stop telling everyone that we’re a cloud-based audit solution! We were floored, and more than a little nervous about where this conversation might be going. But our company values motivate us to continue to pursue the conversation wherever it leads.
It turns out that she does not do any audit work. Like many small firms, the bulk of her work is focused on compilations and reviews.
She loves Auvenir because it’s so much more than audit. Yes, we tackled the audit first, but in the process, we also created a powerful toolset for much of the work of the traditional accounting firm.
Did we limit ourselves when we marketed ourselves as a cloud-based audit solution? Perhaps a little, but you’re always looking to have an elevator pitch that helps people quickly understand what your product does. Today, we are going to stop selling ourselves short. We’re tremendously proud of what we’ve accomplished to date at Auvenir and of the way we are transforming the work of audit teams across the country, but we’re more than that now – it’s time to reflect on the elevator pitch and to expand our definition of what we do!
A big shoutout to our customers for their honest feedback, and our product research team for relentlessly pursuing the truth.