For years, developers have been seen as executors who implement, build, and solve technical problems. But the world has changed. Products are no longer built in silos. What drives value today is a fusion of technological expertise and entrepreneurial thinking. In other words: Every developer should learn to think like a business owner.
This isn't just a nice-to-have, it’s a must-have in an age where technology drives business models, and innovation is the competitive edge.
From Engineer to Entrepreneurial Thinker
When Prof. Dr. Andreas Kuckertz, one of the most cited entrepreneurship researchers in the DACH region, writes about the importance of entrepreneurial thinking in all disciplines, he's not just addressing startup founders. He's addressing everyone who wants to make an impact.
'Entrepreneurs are conscientious change agents. They perceive opportunities because they are aware that these could be anywhere.' [1] Kuckertz p. 9
That entrepreneurial drive is what separates someone who writes code from someone who builds the future, takes a risk and shapes the change.
Kuckertz emphasizes that entrepreneurial thinking is not just about starting a company. It's about understanding how ideas create value, how to communicate that value, and how to navigate uncertainty and opportunity.
Why This Shift Matters—For You and Your Team
Here’s the thing: thinking like a business owner means understanding the why behind your work.
- Why is this feature being built?
- Who pays for it—and why?
- What problems are we really solving with this software artifact?
- What would happen if we stopped building and just asked more questions?
According to Harvard professor Michael E. Porter, value creation stems from one of three core competitive strategies. The first one is the Cost leadership. This means that your approach and technique is the most efficient and differenciates you from others. This leads to the second strategy the Differentiation. This means to be the most unique in marketing, in a special feature or something else. The last one is also special and needed for developers: Focus/Segmentation. This means that you sepcialice in a specific field. For developers this is quite easy through addressing a specific Technology or market. [2] Porter Ch. 1, pp 11-15
Developers need to ask themselves:
- Am I building with ruthless efficiency (cost leader)?
- Am I bringing a unique vision or tech approach (differentiation)?
- Am I serving a niche use case or customer group (segmentation)?
Pick your strategy or mix them up. Form the questions for your customer? How will this product that I ship improve his value add in the market. This is the new business mindest.
AI, Solopreneurs & the Rise of the Indie Tech Creator
The rise of AI changes the game. With tools like GPT-4, Midjourney, and code automation frameworks, the technical barriers to product creation are lower than ever. The new differentiator isn’t the raw coding ability. It’s entrepreneurial creativity.
This is where figures like Marc Lou and other come in and changed the game how to think about software products. Indie hackers and solopreneurs use simple tools, AI, and automation to build and monetize micro-products rapidly. He’s not playing by corporate rules. He’s proof that a single developer with the right mindset can build a business faster than a team of 10 playing it safe.
In this new landscape, developers who use AI as leverage (not competition), build in public and use social media and marketing apporaches, launch fast and iterate, and focus on value creation over perfection, will outperform those still stuck in “just give me the ticket” mode. This proves our hypothesis that cost efficiency, differenciation and segmentation has hit the warm beds of developers and new competitiveness is in the market. This is not a threat to all, who are awake and are reactive towards the change. Developing Apps that enhance productivity of companies or society are still highly needed. Thinking in oppertunities and change will be crucail. The new solopreneur scene is one example in the mirco-prodcut area. But there are also new Startups and chances of scaling, growing and entering new markets.
Solopreneurship isn't just a trend. It's a manifestation of entrepreneurial thinking in its purest, most agile form. And AI is its ultimate amplifier.
Entrepreneurial Thinking is a Superpower
Let’s be clear: This mindset doesn’t replace technical excellence. Developers who think like entrepreneurs ask better questions, align more effectively with stakeholders, and contribute to cooperate strategies. They also become better at prioritizing, negotiating trade-offs, and understanding risk. In a world of tight budgets and shifting roadmaps, that makes all the difference.
Final Thoughts
Thinking like a business owner starts with small shifts:
- - Ask "Why?" more often. Understand the business context behind every sprint goal.
- - Learn to pitch. Can you explain the value of your feature in one sentence to a non-technical stakeholder?
- - Pick your strategy. Are you going for speed (cost), uniqueness (differentiation), or niche dominance (segmentation)?
- - Experiment like a solopreneur. Launch side projects. Try building something solo using AI tools. Keep learning and increase your entrepreneurial mindset by seeing problems and fixing them afterward.
In a rapidly changing world, the most valuable developers will be those who don’t just write great code, but who understand how their code creates value.
This article merely scratches the surface of the entire topic. However, I hope it inspires you to delve deeper and create innovative solutions, offering insight into what motivates me to execute and develop new apps and technologies that have a meaningful impact on people.
So don’t wait to be told what to build. Think like a founder. And build something that matters.
[1] Kuckertz, A. (2021). Understanding Entrepreneurship—More Than Just Starting a Company. Springer.
[2] Porter, M. E. (1985). Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance. Free Press. New York.