Developing software is a tricky business. Whether you're involved in bespoke or commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) software development, it's a process that benefits from the input of a customer advocate.

My experience of software development has been Internet oriented for the past 15 years and includes web content management systems (WCMS), mobile applications and bespoke systems for recruitment, investor relations and sponsorship asset management. In each of these contexts, customer advocacy played a key role in deciding what was to be developed.