Well the first step is to really understand a Customer’s aspirations. Often these can be lost in the detail or buried in long technical specifications – leaving developers with little comprehension of what they are trying achieve. We take a different approach by beginning with a Project Charter. This focuses on the key aspects the project – what are the reasons behind the project, what are we aiming to achieve, how success will be measured, what are the priorities and what the risks. Critically this is created as a collaborative exercise between us and our Customers – it’s vital that we all sign up to a common mission and work towards a clear vision. Throughout the project we refer and, where required, review the Project Charter to ensure that we haven’t lost focus and that all our team are clear on the goals.
Telling a Story: Once the Project Charter is in place, we begin defining exactly who will be using the system and how they will be using it. These are documented in a series of “user stories – easy to follow narratives that clearly describe how users will interact with the system. Each is given a priority by the Customer and a complexity by us. This is essential in making sure that the best value, highest priority requirements are addressed.
