The start of any project is an exciting but challenging time. Our team is always inspired when we receive the task of bringing a new digital product to life. However, to feel confident in our own powers as well as to provide this confidence to our customers, we always offer particular services, which help to make projections of future solutions. This article aims to display the very significant workflow prior to the development of any IT project at Linkup Studio.
The initial step in the discovery phase of the project is a crucial step in the success of the software project. So, what is the discovery phase? It’s a consideration and analysis stage that happens before the first development starts. Here, the project team tries to understand the client’s needs, establish the project scope, and assess the potential challenges and how to deal with them.
In software development, the discovery phase is the phase that gathers requirements, conducts market research and design, and creates preliminary designs or prototypes. This process aligns the vision and expectations of stakeholders to reach the final product that will meet a business objective and user need.
One of the key benefits of the discovery phase is that it helps reduce risks and uncertainties in software projects. Our team always spends time thoroughly exploring the project’s requirements and potential obstacles upfront to make better decisions and avoid many mistakes in the future development process.
To estimate the project cost and prepare a commercial offer for the customer, it is essential for us to carry out the holistic analysis of all aspects related to the execution of a project, from the moment of idea generation and shaping of the business concept to the technical implementation of the targeted product. Such analysis in software development is normally called a discovery phase. This approach allows us to secure our customers against unplanned expenses and to clearly determine the work terms of the team dealing with product development.
Nowadays, it is unreasonable to start a project on software development without a previous in-depth analysis. At Linkup Studio, we take up the product-driven approach, which involves considering all details to deliver “polished” high-end digital products. Therefore, comprehensive research is an opening stage for any project in the company. This is a procedure of collecting information, which provides a deep understanding of the sphere in which the digital product is being developed. It also helps to perceive the customer’s vision and expectations to work out the best design that will be consistent with the purpose of a digital solution and meet the needs of the targeted audience.
Ideally, our purpose for each particular project is to select the relevant approach, technology, and architecture for the implementation of a potential project. Companies that are not involved in software development are often not aware of the existence of a discovery phase. Therefore, they might have no clue what they are supposed to do or what kind of benefits the discovery phase can provide. So, we are here to help the customers observe the development process and direct them in the right course.
The discovery phase is the first and compulsory development stage, which aims to find out all necessary requirements and analyze targeted business goals in order to provide a commercial offer on the technical implementation, determine the project scope, and estimate the development costs.
The discovery phase of project management offers numerous benefits that contribute to software projects success. What is particularly noteworthy about this phase is its ability to provide clarity and direction from the outset.
Some key benefits include:
So if you are planning to create a high-end product and make use of your money, a discovery phase is a must because nobody starts a war without a clear plan.
Investing time and resources in a software project’s discovery phase can dramatically increase the probability of releasing successful software projects that achieve business objectives as well as user needs.
Depending on the project demands, the team involved in the discovery phase may vary. At Linkup Studio, the list of responsible specialists includes:
During the discovery phase, our team at Linkup Studio create a set of documents and schemes for the efficient work on the project:
At the very beginning, we define all main points of the project such as the current market state and business process, problems, solution(s), revenue models. We also describe the Customer persona that helps to create personalized interface to the maximum extent.
To have a deep understanding of the whole process flow from the very start till the end, we create a model displaying actions divided between all roles/supporting processes.
We create a user flow that displays the sequence of events in the system detalized to all screens and actions. It helps to understand the general system structure and find gaps. We determine how the user will interact with the interface of a new product in the form of schematically depicted screens of a software solution and transitions between them.
This particular document represents the list of requirements and all additional details which weren't discussed earlier and connects logical pieces into a fully-working system. We build a clear structure of the project by categorization of tasks with detailed descriptions of what should be done.
Based on the specification we create a Project Plan, which is divided into milestones. It provides the opportunity for the client to have a clear view of what is being done at a particular period of time while the developers have a precise plan of all the activities on the implementation of the project. Such approach allows to remove misunderstanding that can occur in the process between the customer and the team.
This is the first step of creating a prototype. Wireframes visually represent system structure and content blocks which allows to see what should be changed or added before completing the full prototype.
Our designers create unique brisk designs imposing images, icons, colours and fonts on the wireframes. Prototyping represents the projection of the user’s behaviour via visual prototypes of the interface. It allows to save up cost and time losses on the development phase as it displays how the system will look and feel exactly when it's completed. It can be used to have a first user interaction test or to present the system to potential investors.
Technology analysis provides an opportunity to build the relevant project architecture, which is going to meet the business goals of a platform right from the beginning. We offer the best technologies that provide maximum reliability, maintainability, scalability, and flexibility of the system at a high efficiency level. This approach allows for saving costs and provides confidence and clarity in what we do.
The discovery phase might seem to be a too long-lasting and costly procedure but in reality it provides the great opportunity for the team to determine the project implementation period and budget, substantiate the requirements to the end product, identify the needs of the end users and receive the feedback on the product. If you don’t pay necessary attention to the discovery phase there is a big risk of making mistakes in the bottom-line price of the project. The more preliminary work you do prior to the development of the product, the more comprehensible and predictable is the result.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is fundamentally changing how project management is discovering a project, specifically in software projects. As we see the development of this, what is exciting is how AI-powered tools are making discovery more efficient and effective.
Some ways AI is transforming project discovery include:
Automated requirements gathering: AI tools can look at massive amounts of data to extract which project requirements are most relevant, save time, and reduce human error.
Many benefits come with incorporating AI into the discovery phase. These tools can significantly reduce the time and energy needed to collect and analyze information so that project teams can focus on making strategic decisions. In addition, AI can discover insights and patterns that human business analysts might miss, allowing for more informed project planning that we use at Linkup Studio.
Our position regarding AI tools in the discovery phase of a project is that they're not capable of replacing human expertise and approaches. However, a combination of both can create a project discovery phase that is more comprehensive and successful for software projects.
Contact our team to learn more about your product and make a leap in boosting your business.
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