Company
Date Published
Author
Ethan Jones
Word count
867
Language
English
Hacker News points
None

Summary

A/B testing and feature flags are distinct but related tools used for different purposes within organizations, serving both engineering and business needs. Feature flags are primarily focused on product and engineering processes, enabling teams to decouple release from deployment to enhance development velocity and software quality. In contrast, A/B testing is oriented towards optimizing user experience and achieving business goals such as growth and revenue, typically involving product management and marketing teams. While feature flags and A/B tests might share similar implementation methods, their objectives and the analytics required differ significantly. The text argues against combining these tools in a way that compromises their effectiveness, advocating instead for using specialized analytics tools for A/B testing while leveraging feature flags to maximize their value in software delivery. Companies like Harness emphasize maintaining focus on software delivery challenges, ensuring that each tool is used optimally without diluting their effectiveness through unnecessary integrations.