Discovery activities within the implementation lifecycle
Key Takeaway
In discovery, identify the business need first, because it guides the rest of the project. If the current business process isn't well understood, analyze and document the current state before you scope the project or design a solution.
Discovery is the early phase of an implementation where you gather the information a project needs before anyone designs a solution. You learn the business need, who the stakeholders are, and how work happens today. With that information, you can define the scope and recommend the highest-value approach. The requirements and design that come later depend on what you find.
Why discovery matters
Discovery is one of the most important phases of the project lifecycle, because most of a project's groundwork happens during it. Without the right information, you can't reach the best conclusion. Sometimes you can't reach a conclusion at all.
Discovery information falls into three broad areas: project history, analysis, and elicitation.