When you meet with your consultants or developers give them the whole picture, the whole big picture. Don’t think that they can’t handle that at the start and don’t only provide the scope you think will fit within the budget you’ve got.
The initial process of designing software is similar to an architect who has to design a home for someone. A client talks to us, we ask questions, asses what their needs are and develop a solution for them.
Imagine going to an architect and saying alright I want a one storey townhouse built and please make it for me. Then 6 months later while it’s being built you meet with them again and say you know what, I want you to turn this 1 storey townhouse into a triple storey and it has to have a pool and an open terrace on the roof.
They will say the same thing we will when the scope changes so drastically. It will cost you a lot or we have to tear it down and start again the foundations weren’t built for that.
You need to provide all the information they need to know right at the start so they can build it with the right foundation to support your dreams and aspirations and allow the system to grow to the level that it needs to grow too. If you have a small budget, this approach still works. You just need to work closely with them to identify the key items that will deliver the most impact and value within that budget and set up them up for success.
Without following this approach you won’t let your system grow to the level it needs to and will constantly have to be re-doing things and wasting budget.
