Unfortunately, not every Discovery engagement is a success. Please where possible, avoid the following common mistakes:
1. Underestimate
Don't underestimate the importance of requirements Discovery. That also applies to making sure we invest enough time to properly prepare for the discovery and organize the discovery team. We'll talk about preparation in the next section.
2. Misalignment
Ensure that the team is aligned around a common goal, and agenda and they truly understand the roles of one another. Discovery is not a competition on who did better. It's teamwork and should be treated as such.
3. Client Is Not Engaged
Sometimes we see that Clients are not fully engaged. It may happen because the clients say - hey here are 100 pages of docs where all requirements are already collected, or they say we're busy, or discovery teams are too shy to bother clients to participate in the workshops or approve requirements.
4. Poor Transition
And at last, no one cares how great the discovery went if there are no outcomes that other team members may use. I'm talking specifically about the product backlog or user stories for sprint 1, or the project plan. It also doesn't help if there is no proper knowledge transfer meeting (or meetings) to the delivery team, the team that will actually build the solution.
Discovery Toolkit
I have been involved in software development and IT consulting projects for the past 17 years. I use the knowledge and experience I gained to help aspiring business analysts and product owners accelerate their career journeys and find purpose in what they do!
Get the tools you need for successful preparation, execution, and transition of requirements Discovery with the Discovery Toolkit from BA Career Mentor.
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Interested in learning more? Check out my Discovery crash course on Udemy, where I teach business analysts and product owners all the fundamentals of requirements discovery (typical stages, team structure, meeting types, outcomes, and common mistakes) within less than one hour!
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