Discovery Phase

What does the term discovery phase mean?

The term discovery phase refers to the stage of an IT project where its scope, limitations, and goals—as well as its target user—are all defined.

If you wish to learn more about this topic, check out the FAQ section below:

Question #1: How do I implement a discovery phase?

There are seven basic steps to implementing a successful discovery phase:

1. Define the stakeholders
2. Interview the stakeholders
3. Go over the available documents and data
4. Create user avatars and define the user journey
5. Assess the competition
6. Transform collected data into a software requirements specification document
7. Determine the timeline and cost

Let us take a look a closer look at each one:

The first step is to define the stakeholders of the project. Who would be in charge of design and development? Who would be the end-user? Are there any investors involved? Who else is involved in building and using the finished product?

The next step is to talk to all stakeholders to determine what their specific needs and requirements are. This would ensure active participation and support from all parties involved in the project.

The third step is to go over any available documents and data that may be useful to the project. The more information you have, the better the decisions you will be able to make at every stage of the project.

The fourth step is to create a detailed profile of your target user (or users). Who are they? What are their biggest pain points? What kinds of solutions are they looking for? What are their interests? Where do they hang out the most? The better you understand your target user, the more tailored the solution you will be able to develop.

The fifth step is to take a look at your top competitors. The goal is to find any gaps that your solution can fill.

The sixth step is to transform all the data you have collected up to this point into a software requirements specification document. The goal here is to provide everyone involved in the development of the solution a clear picture of what the finished product needs to be able to do.

The final step in implementing a discovery phase is determining the timeline and cost of the project given all the information you have collected up to this point.

Question #2: What are the benefits of implementing a discovery phase?

There are three main benefits of implementing a discovery phase:

1. It helps manage expectations
2. It helps reduce risks
3. It helps keep everyone and everything on track at every stage of the project

Let us take a look at each one in more detail:

First, implementing a discovery phase helps you understand and manage the expectations of all stakeholders before any work is done.

Second, by defining all the scope, limitations, requirements, and goals at the start of the project, you effectively minimise the project’s risk for issues, conflicts, and other unpleasant surprises.

Finally, by implementing a discovery phase and creating a software requirements specification document, you are providing everyone involved in the project with a blueprint they can refer to at all stages of the project.

You can check this article from DOIT to know more about the benefits of implementing it.

Question #3: What are the primary outputs?

In most cases, the primary outputs of a discovery phase are:

• A software requirements specification document
• A UX prototype
• A minimum variable product (MVP) development timeline and cost estimate

Let us take a closer look at each one:

First, as we have seen earlier, a software requirements specification document describes the project in detail, defining its goals, features, scope, recommended technology stack, and proposed architecture.

Second, a UX prototype is a stripped-down version of the finished product designed to allow the client to test its look, feel, and critical features before the actual development begins.

Finally, an MVP development timeline and cost estimate, as the name suggests, provides everyone involved in the project with an idea of how much the project could cost and how long development could take before development begins.