Planning a software project · SOULTWARE LLC
What software discovery should answer before a build
Discovery is a short investigation that reduces uncertainty before a team commits to building. Its output should help the business make a decision, not merely produce a large document.
Map the current process
Follow a real request or transaction from arrival to completion. Identify who touches it, where information is copied, where approval happens, and how exceptions are handled.
Speak with people who do the work and people who depend on its result. Their views often differ, and the software must support both the operational details and the decision the business needs to make.
Inspect systems, data, and constraints
List the tools that hold relevant information and determine which system should remain authoritative. Check whether APIs, exports, permissions, and representative test data are available.
Surface constraints early: privacy, security, accessibility, language, devices, procurement, service availability, and maintenance capacity. Unknowns should become questions with an owner.
End with a decision and next step
A discovery outcome may be a build scope, a prototype, a simpler configuration, an integration, or a recommendation not to build. It should name assumptions, risks, and what is outside the first release.
A useful next step is small enough to validate the important choices. If discovery only repeats the initial feature list, it has not reduced much uncertainty.