3/28/2017 ProjectObjectivesandApproachforUXDesigners:KnowWhichStartoNavigateBy|SolidifyProjectObjectives

ProjectObjecvesandApproachforUXDesigners:KnowWhichStar
toNavigateBy
ByRussUngerandCarolynChandler

Date:May1,2012

Returntothearcle

Thischaptercoversformingobjecvesforyourprojectandoerssomequesonsthatwillhelpyousolidifythosegoals.You'llalsolearnsomecommon
projectapproaches(ormethodologies)andhowtheymayinuencethewayyouwork.

Oneofthekeystoagoodprojectistostarttheteamoutwithclearprojectobjecvesandawellunderstoodapproach.Ideally,theprojectleadershipwillhavethisdenedforyou
buthowdoyouknowiftheydont?

Thischaptertalksaboutformingprojectobjecvesandoerssomequesonsthatwillhelpyousolidifythosegoals.Wellalsodiscusssomecommonprojectapproaches(or
methodologies)andhowtheymayinuencethewayyouwork.

CarolynChandler

Youreintheprojectkicko,withthefullteamfortherstme.Theprojectmanagerhandsoutsomematerialsandgivesyouanoverviewoftheproject.Bytheendofthemeeng,
ideally,youshouldhavethefollowinginformaon:

Whyistheprojectimportanttothecompany?
Howwillstakeholdersdetermineiftheprojectwasasuccess?
Whatapproachormethodologywilltheprojectfollow?
Whatarethemajordatesormilestonesforkeypoints,suchasgengapprovalfrombusinessstakeholders?

Allofthesequesonsconcerntheexpectaonsthatstakeholdershavefortheproject:whattheprojectwillaccomplishandhowtheywillbeinvolvedinit.Thersttwoquesons
pertaintotheprojectsobjecvesandthelasttwototheprojectsapproach.

Aprojectobjecveisastatementofameasurablegoalfortheproject.Letstalkaboutobjecvesinmoredetail.

SolidifyProjectObjecves
Objecvesareanimportantfocusinglensthatyoullusethroughouttheproject.Theyshouldspringfromtheclientcompanysoverallbusinessstrategy,sotheprojectobjecvesshould
beinlinewiththestrategiciniaveswithinthecompany.Forexample,ifthereisastrategiciniavetoappealtoanewgroupofprospecvecustomers(calledamarket),thesiteor
applicaonyourecreangmaybeaneorttoprovidethatmarketwithonlineaccesstoproductsandservicesrelevanttothem.Theobjecveforthatprojectwouldthenbefocusedon
reachingandengagingthatmarket.
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Aclearobjecveresonatesthroughoutaproject.Ithelpsyou:

Asktherightquesonsasyougatherideasfrombusinessstakeholders
Planresearchwithusersandfocusyouranalysisoftheresults
Detailtheideasgatheredfromstakeholdersandusersandconvertthemintoaconsolidatedlistofprojectrequirements
Priorizethoseprojectrequirementsbasedontheirvaluetothecompany
Createeecveinteracondesigns
Managerequestsforchangestothedesignoncedevelopmentbegins
Focuseortsduringdeploymentacvies(suchastrainingandcommunicaonstousersaboutthenewsiteorapplicaonbeforeandduringitslaunch)
Determinewhetheryouvemettheneedsoftheclientcompany,oncetheprojectislaunched

Whenyoustartanewproject,youprobablyhaveprojectobjecvesfromtheprojectssponsor(thebusinessstakeholderwhohasdirectresponsibilityforthesuccessoftheproject),as
wellasasetofprojectrelatedrequestscomingfrombusinessstakeholdersandfromcustomers,buttheyallmaybeabitfuzzy(Figure4.1).Yourgoalistoclarifytheseintosolid
statementsthatyoucanuseasayardsckfortheprojectssuccess.

Figure4.1Fuzzyobjecves,ideas,andneeds

Asolidobjecvehasthefollowingcharacteriscs:

Easytounderstand.Avoidinsiderterminology
Disnct.Avoidvaguestatements;instead,usewordingthatseemslikeitwillbeusefulwhenyourepriorizingrequirements
Measurable.Makeconcretestatementsthatyoucansetanindependentmeasurementagainsttodetermineyoursuccess

Asyoudeneafuzzyobjecve,makingitclearandmeasurable,itbecomesasolidobjecvethatyoucanbasedecisionson(Figure4.2onthenextpage).

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Figure4.2Objecvesbeingsolidied

Youllhearmanystatementsthatcouldbeconsideredobjecves.Analyzingfuzzyonessuchasthosebelowwillhelpyousolidifyyourobjecvesandcommunicatemoreeecvelywithin
theprojectteam.

Clicktoviewlargerimage

Thisisanobjecvefortheenrecompany,butistoobroadforaspecicproject.Mulpleiniavesatthecompanyneedtocometogethertomakethishappen;anyonesiteor
applicaonmayhelpwiththisbutwillbeveryunlikelytobeabletohandletheenreburdenunlesstheenrecompanyisaboutthisonesiteorapplicaonanditendsupbeingwildly
successful.

Clicktoviewlargerimage

Thisoneisbeer,becauseasiteorapplicaoncouldhaveanimpactonthis,butitsslltoovague.Whyisitimportanttogenerateexcitement?Howdoesthatexcitementtranslateinto
meengabusinessneed?Andhowcanyoutellifyouvebeensuccessful?

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Clicktoviewlargerimage

Nowweregengthere.Thisoneiseasytomeasure,butitstoofocusedonanintermediatestep.Supposeyoudogeneratemoretrac:Itmaynothelpyouifpeopledontperformthe
aconsyouwantoncetheygetthere.

Fuzzyobjecvescangiveyouasenseofaclientsdesiresandlargergoals.Fromtheseyoucancramoresolidprojectobjecves,suchas

Increasetherevenuefromonlinesalesby10percent
Increasetherevenuefromonlineadversingby20percent
Increasethenumberofcurrentandpotenalcustomersinourcustomerdatabasetoatleast20,000
Deliverhighlyratedandhighlyreferencedcontenttoourprimaryusers(Notethatthisonerequiressomeworktodecidehowtomeasurehighlyratedandhighly
referenced,buttheelementsaretheretobuildfrom)

Eachofthesecanbemeasuredandaectedbyyourproject.Theycanalsomappreycloselytoyourdesignsandthefeaturesoered.Forexample,itsverycommontooeranonline
newsleerasawaytomeetanobjecveofgrowingthecustomerdatabase:Todeliverthenewsleeryoullneedtocapturecustomeremailaddresses,whichwillbeaddedtothe
database.Objecvesmayalsobringoutnewrequirements.Forexample,ifyouremeasuringsuccessbytheaverageranggiventoarclesonyoursite,youllneedafeaturethatallows
userstogiverangs.Intheseways,objecveshelpyoufocusasyougatherideasforthesite,andthesemaylaterbecomeprojectrequirements.

Iftherearemulpleobjecves,besuretocreateapriorizedlistwithyourbusinesssponsorandprojectteam.Objecvessomemesconictwitheachotherduringdesign,andthe
teamwillneedtoknowwhattakesprecedence.Thenalpriorizedlistofobjecvesshouldcomefromyourprojectsponsor,butyoucanbeakeypartofthediscussion.Letstalkabout
how.

HowCanaUXDesignerHelp?

Ifyoundtheprojectobjecvesareunclearatthebeginningofaproject,youcanbringyourfacilitaonskillstobear.Helptheprojectteamunderstandthebusinessrelatedcontextof
theprojectbyholdingaworkshopwithkeystakeholders(seethenextchapterformoreonidenfyingtherightstakeholders).Yourgoalinthissession,whichusuallylaststwotofour
hours,istobringoutinformaononthecompanysstrengths,weaknesses,opportunies,andthreats.CalledaSWOTanalysis,thisisacommonbusinessanalysistechniqueandoneway
todiscussacompanysposioninthemarket.Youcanalsousethismetodiscussthecompanyscompeon.

UnderstandStrengthsandWeaknesses

TheSWinaSWOTanalysisarethecompanyscurrentstrengthsandweaknessesastheypertaintotheproject.Strengthsandweaknessescouldincludeinternalprocessesaswellas
externalperceponsandoentheyinuenceeachother.Forexample,acompanywithalargeresearchanddevelopment(R&D)departmentcouldhaveaccesstoalargesourceof
originalresearchthatispublished(astrength),buttheremaybenoonetohelpmakethatcontentmoreaccessibletotheaverageuser,leadingtotheperceponthatthecompanyis
tooacademic(aweakness).

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IdenfyOpportuniesandThreats

TheOTisthefuturefacinghalfoftheSWOT.Consideringthethingsthatdierenatethecompanyfromitscompetors,whatfutureiniavescoulditpursuethatwillopenupanew
nicheorstrengthenacurrentone?Whatsituaonscouldthreatenthoseplans?

Forexample,ourR&Dcompanymaydecidetohirewriterstopublishmoreaccessiblefeaturearclesarounditsoriginalresearch(anopportunity),butifthecurrentsitetoolsetdoesnt
haverobustcontentmanagementfeatures,thepublishingprocessmaybeprohibivelyslow.Thatcouldgivecompetorsachancetorespondmorequickly(athreat).

CompareCompetors

Whatisthecompanysmaincompeon?Whoarethecompetorsforthesitebeingdeveloped?Theycanbedierent,especiallyforlargecompaniesorbrandnewsites.

Aretheresitesthatarentnecessarilydirectcompetorsbutthatrepresentinteresngmodelstoconsider?Youcanlearnalotfromreviewingotherecommercesitestoseewhether
andhowtheysellwhatyoureselling.

PullItTogether

SWOTandcompetorsaregoodtopicstodiscussatthesamemebecausetheyinteractwitheachother.Itshardtotalkaboutfuturethreatswithoutknowingwhoyourcompetors
areandonceyoustarttalkingaboutfutureopportunies,newcompetorsmaycometomind.

OnceyouhaveafullpicturehereofthecompanyscompetorsandSWOT,yourprojectobjecvesaswellastheoveralltofyourprojectwithinthecompanystrategyshould
becomeeasiertodene,andtheprioriesamongthemshouldbecomeclear.

Solidifyingprojectobjecveshelpsyouunderstandexpectaonsofwhattheprojectisgoingtoaccomplish.Next,letstalkaboutexpectaonsconcerninghowtheprojectwillberun.
Understandingtheprojectapproachwillhelpyoucollaborateeecvelyandinvolvetherightpeopleattherightme.

UnderstandtheProjectApproach
Knowingtheoverallapproach,ormethodology,ofaprojectisanimportantpartofunderstandingwhenandhowyoullbeinvolvedandhowyoushouldbeinvolvingothers,suchasyour
projectteamandbusinessstakeholders.

Somemesthereseemtobeasmanyprojectapproachesasthereareprojects.Howtochoosetherightapproachforaprojectisalargetopicinitself.Themethodologyyouchoosecan
dependonmanythings,includingthestructureandlocaonoftheprojectteam,thetechnologiesbeingusedontheproject,andthedegreetowhichcollaboraonisapartofthe
companysculture.Forthepurposesofthisbook,wereassumingthatyouvejoinedaprojectwheretheapproachhaslargelybeendeterminedbythoseresponsiblefortheprojects
success,suchastheprojectsponsorandprojectmanager.Inthissituaon,yourmaingoalwillbetounderstandtheapproachandhelpmakeiteecveforthebusinessstakeholders
andyourusers.

Herewellfocusontwoofthemostcommontypesofapproach,aswellasathirdthatshowsapossiblevariaonyoumightencounteronaproject.Theimportantthingtonoteisthat
mostapproachesinvolvethesamesteps:

Plantheoverallstrategy,approach,andteamstructure
Denetheprojectrequirements
Designinteraconandvisualconceptsandevolvethemintodetailedspecicaons
Develop,test,andrenethesoluon
Deploythesoluonviamessaging,training,andaplannedlaunch

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Extendtheprojectbymakingrecommendaonsforimprovements

Thenamesforthesestepsmayvary,asmaythedegreetowhichtheyoverlapandthewayinformaonisdocumented.Butthegeneralacviesineachsteparecommontomost
projectsandtoallthreemodelspresentedhere.

WaterfallApproach
Awaterfallapproach(Figure4.3)involvestreangthestepsofaprojectasseparate,disnctphases,whereapprovalofonephaseisneededbeforethenextphasebegins.Forexample,
theDesignphasedoesnotbegininearnestunlrequirementshavebeenapprovedbybusinessstakeholders,whosignoononeormorerequirementsdocumentsattheendofthe
Denephase.

Figure4.3Exampleofawaterfallapproach,whereeachphasefallsintothenext

Theproblemwithapurewaterfallapproachisthatitassumesthateachphasecanbecompletedwithminimalchangestothephasebeforeit.Soifyoucomeupwithnewrequirements
intheDesignphase,whichiscommon,youmustsuggestchangestodocumentsthatwereapprovedattheendoftheDenephase,whichcanthrowotheplanandtheschedule.

AgileApproaches
Becausechangeisconstant,projectteamsareconnuallylookingformoreexibleapproachesthanthewaterfallmodel.Manymethodologiesfollowamoreuidapproach,withsome
stepshappeningalongsideeachother;forexample,versionsofthewebsitecouldbereleasedonarapid,iteravescheduleusinganagileorrapiddevelopmentapproach(Figure4.4).An
agileapproachgenerallyhasagreaterfocusonrapidcollaboraonandareducedfocusondetaileddocumentaonandformalsigno.

Figure4.4Exampleofanagileapproach

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Atrueagileapproach(followingthebestpraccesdevelopedbymembersoftheAgileAlliance,forexample)callsforsmallteamswhosemembersarelocatednexttoeachother
physically,withlilefocusondeningformalrolesbetweenteammembers.Workingthiswayallowsaveryhighdegreeofcollaboraon,whichreducestheneedforheavy
documentaonbetweenthestagesofdesign,development,andtesng.Ateammembercanposeaqueson,cometotheanswertogetherwithotherteammembersduringaquick
whiteboardingsession,andimplementasoluonwithoutthedelayofdetaileddocumentaonandapproval.Stakeholderreviewsoccurwithafullyfunconingsystemwhenoneofthe
manyiteraonsisreleased,andtheresulnginputistakenintoaccountasthenextiteraonisplanned.(Iteraonsaredraversionsofaparcularsiteorapplicaonandmayalsobe
calledsprints.)

Designersmovingtoanagileapproachfortherstmeoenfaceaconundrum.Howdoyougofromawaterfallapproach(whichfavorsdetaileddocumentaonandsigno,taking
weeksormonthsperphase),toanagileapproach(whichfavorsconversaonsandquickdecisionmakingoverthecourseofdaysorweeks)andsllmakemefordesignthinkingand
userresearch?Toseehowsomedesignershavemadethetransion,letsdivedeeperintoaparcularkindofapproachcalledLeanUX.

LeanUX

LeanUXisanagileprojectapproachthatswellsuitedtoproductsbeingdevelopedinthefaceofgreatuncertainty(asmostproductsforstartupsare).Itreduceswasteintheprojects
processbyremovingeortspentonfeaturesthatdontreallymaeratthemeofeachiteraon.Forexample,spendingmedesigninganenresetofcategoriesandsubcategoriesof
productsmaybewastefuliftheteamhasnotyetproventhattheyreoeringproductsthattheirtargetusersarewillingtopurchase.

SomeoftheprinciplesofLeanUXinclude:

Afocusonvalidatedlearning.Iteraonsoftheproductarenotseenassimplyworkingversionsoftheproduct,butasthepresentaonofahypothesisthatcanbetestedwith
users.Thegoalistolearnasquicklyaspossible,byvalidangdesigndecisionswithcustomersandincorporangthesubsequentchangesthatwillhelptheteamlearnthenext
importantlesson.

TheOriginsofLeanUX

EricRiesdevelopedanapproachcalledtheLeanStartupaerstudyingToyotasleanmanufacturingprocesses,andSteveBlanksCustomerDevelopmentmodel,whichemphasizes
theneedforstartupstohaveanearlyfocusoncustomers.ALeanUXapproachbuildsonthisdireconwithitscustomerinclusion,itsreduconofwasteintheprocess,andits
denionofproductiteraonsasexperiments.

Entrepreneurscanndouthowexperimentaonandafocusonlearningcanhelpstartupteamsinthefaceofuncertainty,inTheLeanStartupbyEricRies(CrownBusiness,2011).

AconnuousloopofBuildMeasureLearn.Leanprocessespriorizethebuildingofatestableiteraonoftheproductasquicklyaspossible,inordertotestassumponsthat
theteamismakingabouthowuserswillreacttotheproduct.Testsfailorsucceedbasedonqualitaveuserfeedbackduringresearch,andonquantavemeasuresthatareput
inplacetotracksuccess.Thesemeasuresshouldpullfromactualuserbehaviorforexample,thenumberofregistraonsforasite,thenumberofproductspurchased,andso
on.Careshouldbetakenthatthemeasuresputinplacereallytesttheassumponsofthatiteraon.Forexample,ifpeopleareregisteringforyoursite,butnottakingany
importantaconsinitaerwards,youvejustlearnedthatyourpostregistraonexperienceneedstobemorecompelling!Incorporatethatlearningintoyourdecisionsonwhat
goesintothenextbuild,andcompletetheloop(Figure4.5).

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Figure4.5LeanapproachesfocusonaloopofBuildMeasureLearn.Theprocessismeanttoincreasethespeedbywhichteamscyclethroughtheloop,maximizinglearningand
allowingforquickeradjustmentsinstrategybasedoncustomerresponse.

TheimportanceofdevelopingtheMinimumViableProduct(MVP)ateachiteraon.Inaleanprocess,thefocusisontesngahypothesisaboutuserbehavior,ratherthan
buildingafullyfunconingproductateachiteraon.Teamsdontneedtocreateafullyfunconingdigitalversionoftheirproducttotestahypothesis(althoughamorerobust
digitalversionwilleventuallyexistaerseveralcycles,ifthingsaregoingwellonthevalidaonfront).EspeciallyinbeginningstagesteamscanfocusondevelopingaMinimum
ViableProduct,whichEricRiesdenesasthatversionofproductthatenablesafullturnoftheBuildMeasureLearnloopwithaminimumamountofeortandtheleast
amountofdevelopmentme.Forexample,elementsoftheexperiencethatshouldeventuallybecomeautomatedlikeconrmaonemailswhenapurchasehasbeenmade
maybecompletedmoremanuallybyateammemberwhilethetestisbeingruninanearlieriteraon.

AsktheExperts:JeGothelf

JeGothelfisthefounderofProof,aproductinnovaonanddesignstudio,andistheauthorofLeanUX:GengOutoftheDeliverablesBusiness(OReilly,2012.)

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YouvesaidthatLeanUXisanapproachthatgetsdesignersoutofthedeliverablesbusiness.ButmanyUXdesignersusedeliverablesdocumentaonlikedetailedwireframes
inordertocommunicatedesignrecommendaonstotheirteams.DoesLeanUXskipthisstep?

DeliverablesarentskippedinLeanUX.Theyresllused,totheextentnecessary,tocommunicatetotargetaudienceslikestakeholders,developers,andcustomers.Buttheyrenot
thefocusoftheproject,andtheydontcreatethebolenecktheywouldinwaterfallwheretheteamsitsbackandwaitsforthedesigntobedoneandthensignedobefore
anyoneelsebeginsworking.Also,theressllalargeamountofworkthatyouredoingasadesigneroutsideoftheactualdocumentaon,becausethegoalistovalidateyour
designhypothesesassoonaspossiblesothemoretestsyourerunningwithcustomers,themorerightyoullbeintheproductyourebuilding.Thetricktogengtoalevelof
eciencywithitistobuildasharedunderstandingacrossyourenrecrossfunconalteam.Themoreyoureouttherewithyourteamhavingconversaonswiththem,discussing
whatyoureseeingandwhyyouthinkthatis,themoretheygetaclearsenseofwhyyouremakingthedesigndecisionsyouremakingandwhatdireconthedesignisheadingin.
Whentheyhaveaclearsenseofthat,theyneedlessdocumentaoninordertostartbuildingthoseexperiencesbecausetheyhavethefoundaonandsharedunderstandingfrom
whichtowork.

HowdoesaLeanUXapproachaecttheroleofaUXdesignerontheproject?

ItassumesaleadershipqualitytotheUXroleontheteam.TheLeanUXprocessforcesyoutoconstantlycommunicateouttotheteamandsolicitfeedbackfromthem.Butitsnot
designbycommiee,either.Yes,youreouttheresolicingfeedbackfromyourteamearlyandoen,butitisntyourjobtotakealltheirfeedbackandmakesureitallmakesitinto
thenextiteraonofthedesign.Itsyourjobtopriorizethefeedbackbasedonwhatsneededtogettothenextleveloflearningwithyourcustomers.Thenyouincorporatethat
andcommunicatetheresultouttotheteamsotheyreawareofwhatdesigndecisionsarebeingmade,andwhy.

IsthereanythingtheteamshouldhavefromthebeginningtoensureaLeanUXapproachissuccessful?

Thereneedstobeafreedomtofailintheorganizaon.Ifpeoplefeeltheyhavetogetitrighttherstme,rightoutofthegate,thanthewholeprocessfails.Thisisahypothesis
validaonprocess,andbytheverynatureofityouregoingtocomeupwithsomewronganswers.Theideaistogureoutwhatthosewronganswersareasquicklyaspossibleand
minimizethewastedeortgoingdownthosepaths.Ifyoudonthavethefreedomtobewronginyourorganizaon,thenyouwillnotbeabletoexecutethisprocesswithanykind
ofsuccess.

Amoveawayfromformaldeliverablesanddetaileddocumentaon.Thisisconsistentwiththeoverallagileapproach.Deliverableslikedetailedwireframesandusecases,
whichmaybecomereplacementsfordirectcommunicaonandfastimplementaonofideas,areremovedfromtheprocessinfavoroffastermethodslikesketching.Conceptual
wireframesareoensllused,butaremeanttoillustratequicklyasanaidtocommunicaon,anddonotliveonasrecordsofdesigndecisions.

Whenanagileapproachisworkingasitsdesignedto,itsabeaufulthing.Atmostcompaniesandwithinmostconsulngengagements,however,teamsrarelyfollowapureagile
approach.Inpart,thisisbecausecompaniesoenhavedistributedteamsandremoteworkers,whichmakesitdiculttomaintainthehighdegreeofcollaboraonneededtotakebest
advantageofthepureagileapproach.However,agreaterprevalenceofvirtualcollaboraontoolsanddigitalsketchingtoolsmakesthisdistributedagileapproachincreasinglypossible,
aslongasteamscommittoclearcommunicaon,highavailability,andeecvedecisionmaking.

Surng

LUXrisacompanyfoundedonLeanUXpracces.YoucanseeanintroducontoLeanUXandmoredetailonitsprinciplesontheirsiteathp://luxr.co/leanux/9principlesfor
leanux/.

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AllUXdesignersshouldbefocusedonreducingwasteintheprocess,andpriorizingcommunicaonoverdocumentaonregardlessofthespecicapproachoftheteam,as
WhitneyHesspointsouthere:hp://whitneyhess.com/blog/2011/02/27/whyidetestthetermleanux/

ModiedApproaches
Manyprojectstrytofollowanapproachthatmarrieselementsofwaterfallandagileapproaches,withenoughstructureanddocumentaontoreducetherisksposedbydistributed
teamsandturnoverofteammembers,butenoughcollaboraonanditeraontorespondtochangesinarelavelynimbleway.Forexample,aprojectmayfollowawaterfallmodelbut
includeanoverlapinphasessothattherearekeycollaboraonpointsfromteamtoteam.Thisallowspotenalchangestosurfaceearlierineachphase.Thismayalsoincludeanearly
release(suchasabetareleasetoaparcularusergroup)withashorteriteraoncycle.Feedbackfromthatreleasecanthenbeincorporatedbeforethefulldeploymentofthenewsite.
(Figure4.6)

Figure4.6Modiedwaterfallwithbetarelease

NocethesmalleriteraonswithintheDesignphaseinFigure4.5.ThatsoneofthegreatestvaluesyoubringtoyourteamasaUXdesigner.Toolssuchaswireframes(Chapter12)and
prototypes(Chapter13)canallowyoutogatherfeedbackonquickiteraonsofideas,beforealotofdevelopmentmehasbeenputin.

ThisbooklooselyfollowsamodiedwaterfallapproachliketheoneshowninFigure4.6.However,manyofthetopicscoveredherewillapplytoyourprojectregardlessofthespecicsof
yourapproach,becausethebasicacviesbehindthemdeninganddesigning,forexamplearesllnecessary.

DeepDiving

Ifyourprojectisusinganagileapproach,youllhaveuniqueneedsduringrequirementsgathering,suchasthewringofuserstoriesasawaytocapturerequirements.We
recommendUserStoriesApplied:ForAgileSowareDevelopmentbyMikeCohn(AddisonWesleyProfessional,2004).

HowDoestheApproachAectMe?
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Knowingyourapproachhelpsyouunderstandanumberofthings:

Whatquesonsyoushouldbeasking,andwhen.Forexample,ifyoureworkingwithapurewaterfallapproach,youllneedtoputinextraeorttomakesuretherequirements
capturedintheDenephasecontainalltheinformaonyouneedfortheDesignphase.(Wellbediscussingrequirementsinthenextchapter.)
Expectaonsonhowprojectteammemberswillcollaborateandhowclosethatcollaboraonwillbe.Forexample,anagileapproachrequiresveryclosecollaboraon.A
waterfallapproachmayinvolveindividualworkmostoftheme,withtouchpointsonceorseveralmesperweek.
Thelevelofdetailneededinyourdocumentaonandthelevelofformality.Documentssubmiedatsignopointsneedtobeformal,almostlikelegalcontracts.Typically,
youllneedmoreformaldocumentsinawaterfallapproach,wheresignoisrequiredbeforeyoumoveontothenextphase.However,youmayalsohavesomeformalsigno
documentswhenusinganagileapproachforexample,tocaptureinformaonatmajordecisionpoints,suchaswhenaparculariteraonispreparedforfullreleaseand
deployment.
Importantmilestonesthatinvolveapprovalfromstakeholdersanddeploymenttodierentgroups.Theapproachwilldeterminewhatdierentaudiencesneedtoprovideat
variouspointsintheproject,includingapprovalsfromstakeholdersatsignopointsandfeedbackfrompotenalusersduringabetarelease.

Nowthatyouvesolidiedyourprojectobjecvesandgainedanunderstandingoftheprojectapproach,inthenextchapterwellstartwiththeprimaryworkintheDenephase:
gatheringrequirements.

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