It is not easy to predict the success of introducing a new intellectual product or business idea since it requires a detailed analysis of all possible risks and errors and a forecast of the likelihood of their occurrence. The new project discovery phase is a set of analytical measures that will help determine the effectiveness of a new product launched in the industry with high accuracy.
What do we offer?
When performing the discovery phase of a project, we offer the customer the following opportunities and benefits:
- Validating the idea of the project and possible technologies behind it.
- Developing Software Requirement Specifications document
- Creating the timeline/roadmap and costs estimations of the project
- Accurate forecasting of product development, isolation of the stages of adaptation of a new software solution for a specific business area.
- Validation of the usage of emerging technologies – the Internet of things and AI.
- Interface analysis and improvement suggestions, software adaptation to virtual and augmented reality.
- Satisfying the client’s needs according to the pre-agreed terms of reference.
We have a team of highly qualified professionals, each of whom has extensive experience in IT market research, implementation of new products, and forecasting the effectiveness of its use, taking into account the activities of competitors.
Competitive advantages of our team
Each customer who applied to our company can receive the following types of professional services:
- Preparation of terms of reference and roadmap.
- Coordination of the scope of work and terms of order fulfillment.
- Creation of a team from among the staff of the enterprise.
- Product architecture analysis.
- Identification of weaknesses and errors in the work.
- Checking the correctness of writing the program code.
- System scaling control.
- Issuing detailed recommendations to the customer.
- If necessary, rewriting the code, reinstalling the software, adjusting the architecture, expanding the cloud storage, and other operations to modernize the system.
- Justification of the decisions made for the customer.
- Training employees to use the new product interface.
We work strictly following the needs of the customer, who leave only positive feedback about us. All analytical work is carried out as soon as possible, and, upon completion, the client receives some constructive recommendations.
Our approach to work
Upon contacting our company, we start working with the customer, according to the following algorithm, which consists of 3 basis points:
- Conducting oral consultation with the client and an interview in the form of a question and answer. This is necessary to create a sketch of the future work algorithm.
- Drawing up a detailed roadmap with the customer, isolating all the points for completing the tasks, drawing up a calendar plan indicating the deadline for each stage.
- The signing of the contract with all the details gives the customer a guarantee of the completion of all works and the expected result.
In fulfilling the order after signing the contract, we organize online sessions in real-time. The time of such briefings is agreed upon in advance. The client gets the opportunity to learn about the progress of analytical work and ask any specialist any questions that interest him.
Briefings are held interactively with the provision of the client with the necessary visual diagrams, visualizations, and animations. If necessary, the customer can independently adjust the materials provided to him and send them for approval.
When forming a team, we use only horizontal management without a clearly defined hierarchy. As a result, each professional has the right to put forward their ideas, ensuring a creative approach and giving the best effect.
Discovery phase results
Based on the results of our work, the customer receives a detailed report. The document reflects information such as software requirements with tables, graphs, and specifications, a forecast for scaling the product, and a preliminary estimate of the amount of investment to implement the business idea. The outline of the report is detailed below, developed by our professionals.
Specification of requirements for the system
This stage is the main one in the analytical work. In the course of a complex of studies, risks and errors are identified and the degree of security of the personal data of the company’s customers.
After analyzing all the shortcomings, an application upgrade plan is developed, a set of program codes is determined, and the need to purchase equipment with an indication of its modifications and estimated cost.
Accompanying documentation for the report
The report is an official document of the established form, which includes the following mandatory items:
- Specification of system requirements.
- Separation of stages of work.
- Development of a calendar schedule.
- Brief description of each stage.
- Graphs to improve the efficiency of work.
- Analysis of the competitive environment.
- Additional recommendations for the customer.
Each report is certified by all members of the team, who take full responsibility for the effectiveness of the work of the software, provided that all recommendations are followed.
Drawing up an estimate and calendar plan
The exact cost of developing new software or modernizing an existing MVP system is determined at this stage.
The customer receives information about the cost and the rationale for each item with an offer of alternative options.
At the stage of agreeing on the terms of reference, the size of the planned investment in time is initially discussed with the client, and, as a rule, this threshold is not exceeded without agreement with the customer.
Stages of interaction with the client
Each potential customer is interested in the issue of transparency of relationships with the developer at every stage. Therefore, according to the developed model, we propose just such a scheme, which is described below.
Creation of a team
The number of people on the team required to develop the software is determined according to the following algorithm:
- One of the company’s top management is an informal team leader who makes decisions on general issues.
- Engineers who will carry out the main analytical work.
- Designers who evaluate the effectiveness and prototyping of the interface.
- IT specialists, whose range of tasks includes identifying errors in product scaling and building application architecture.
Even though each team member performs the tasks assigned to him, all employees constantly meet among themselves and discuss the stages of product development in real-time.
Estimate and price negotiation
Determining the exact final price for analytical work on the software is almost impossible. In research activities, several problems may arise that require additional labor costs to solve.
At the same time, the specialists of our company are guided by experience in a particular production area. This allows us to accurately calculate the final cost of the estimate and fix it in the contract. When coordinating investments with the customer, misunderstandings are eliminated, and the discovery phase can estimate each stage at a fixed amount.
When working on high-tech systems, a detailed specification is drawn up for each stage of work, in which the amounts allocated for equipment, materials, and the cost of labor are prescribed.
Estimation of time costs
It is often challenging for the client to explain why the analytical work costs as much as the developer asks.
In such situations, we resort to an estimate of the normalized working time for each employee and, based on the number of people in the team, draw up a detailed calendar plan indicating the stages of payments and the timing of the implementation of each clause the contract.
List of required materials
The project may require some materials and equipment when introducing new developments and upgrading applications. Therefore, all information about each device is indicated in the estimate, with a detailed justification of the need.
When signing the contract, a list of equipment and materials is attached. During the approval of the act of work’ acceptance, our specialist will demonstrate to the customer each item that has been integrated into the system.
Preparation of interim reports
If necessary, we organize face-to-face and online meetings with clients in the presence of team members. In addition, we prepare interim reports in both electronic and printed form.
Online meetings are often held 2-3 times a week, as agreed with the customer. Then, all team members explain the results achieved take into account the customer’s comments, which are written in the protocol and analyzed at the next briefing.
When working with us, each potential customer can be sure of high efficiency, speed of completing tasks, and service quality.
