Our developers have built highly effective internal AI tools, and we are tempted to package and sell them to our industry competitors. How do we use our V/TO® Core Focus to decide whether this software venture is a lucrative asset or a dangerous distraction?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

It is incredibly common for service companies to build a great internal tool and immediately dream of transforming into a high-margin software business. However, launching a software division requires a completely different operational structure, talent pool, and capital allocation strategy.

To evaluate this opportunity without losing your way, look directly at your Core Focus™ on the V/TO®. Your Core Focus consists of your Purpose/Passion/Cause and your Niche. Ask your leadership team: Does building, selling, and supporting commercial software fit within our defined niche?

If your niche is delivering high-touch advisory services, managing a software as a service product will pull your leadership team away from what you do best. Software clients expect constant updates, technical support, and rapid bug fixes. Your current Accountability Chart is likely not structured to handle these demands.

Use your quarterly meeting to put this opportunity on the Issues List and solve it using IDS®. If the software product does not directly serve your Core Focus, it is a shiny object. Do not let it distract you.

If you decide the market opportunity is too big to ignore, you must structurally isolate it. Create a completely separate entity with its own Accountability Chart, dedicated budget, and distinct V/TO®. This structure prevents the software venture from cannibalizing your core business and ensures that both entities build clear, transferrable value for an eventual Step by Step Exit.