The process described below outlines my approach for projects that are not small nor simple. I can solely complete those within a couple of days. However, for more complex projects I will involve more developers and we'll work as a team to deliver the software.
The process starts with
Estimates
Clients usually initiate conversations by seeking estimates for their projects. They often ask about the potential cost and time frame for a project. However, providing accurate estimates is literally impossible. Why? Read my blog post.
Companies and individuals alike that do offer concrete estimates usually fall into one of two categories:
- - They did the same project, with the same variables, with the same people, under the same circumstances one or more times.
- - Lie, to make you feel better.
If you read the article you'll ask me the right question and I will answer.
Gathering Insights
Our focus then shifts to understanding the essential aspects of the project and its objective.
We go deep into understanding your needs, target market, existing solutions, and how we can enhance them. This entails establishing a clear scope and purpose for the project. Critical questions guide this phase: Who are the users and what roles do they play? What exact needs and pain points does the product aim to address? How will the proposed solution surpass existing offerings? Who's effected by it? What are the software's key functionalities, key features, and capabilities?
Laying The Groundwork
We transition into setting the SRS, scrutinizing requirements, eliminating redundancies, setting up a glossary, identifying key priorities, developing schemas, User Stories, C4s, BPMNs, ADRs ...
Refinement and Iteration come in handy. If clarity is lacking, we ask further questions and refine our analysis until no more refinement is needed, and no outstanding questions remain. with this, requirements are sealed and the project is ready for development. The process takes anywhere from 5 days to 2 weeks to finish.
Proof Of Concept
Next, is the PoC. This requires building the product according to the specification in a very limited time frame. The result will have multiple bugs and open ends, but it will implement the main feature(s). This phase typically lasts 2-5 days.
Development & Refinement
This phase takes most of the time and budget, it will involve many participants to work simultaneously with me. Since all inconsistencies are treated as issues that are yet to be resolved, this phase is mostly about finding, reporting, and fixing as many bugs as possible to stabilize the product and get it ready for market launch. We incrementally release a working version of the software multiple times a day/week, which leads us to the next phase:
Launch & Feedback
We launch the product to its end-users and collect their feedback (both positive and negative). Everything they report back to us is registered as a bug. We then categorize the bugs an go through the Development & Refinement phase once again. This process may take a few months or years, depending how far the client is willing to go.