Problem first: User Centricity at Steadybit

Steadybit, originally founded as Chaosmesh in 2019, emphasizes a user-centric approach to product development, focusing on democratizing Chaos Engineering by creating accessible tools that identify and rectify system weaknesses before they become problematic. The company employs a "product first, sales later" strategy to validate its founding vision, prioritizing the development of a product that addresses user needs and creates market value while delaying sales efforts. Through a process involving semi-structured interviews and affinity mapping, Steadybit discovered that users are concerned about causing disruptions in their systems, accept some downtime as a trade-off, and prefer tools that emphasize results over process complexity. These insights have informed the evolution of Steadybit's product, highlighting the need for a balance between engineering speed and system reliability, which is increasingly relevant in the context of cloud-based microservices. The company's interdisciplinary approach and willingness to adapt its strategies are crucial to its success in meeting user needs and achieving a scalable business model.