In This Blog
- Why the Workshop Process Matters
- Step 1: The Workshop
- Step 2: Designing the Solution
- Step 3: Solution Vision Presentation
- Step 4: Getting Started
- What Sets Our Process Apart
- How Emergent Software Can Help
- Final Thoughts
- Frequently Asked Questions
TL;DR
- Our workshop process happens before you commit to a project, ensuring both parties understand requirements, budget, and timeline before signing a contract.
- Step 1 involves collaborative workshops where we learn about your organization, define objectives, map current and ideal states, and create a prioritized backlog.
- We design a tailored solution internally including a solution vision, technology plan, updated backlog, and revised budget before presenting it to you.
- The solution vision presentation aligns everyone on requirements, architecture, and how we'll work together throughout the project.
- Our process focuses on time to value, not maximizing project size. We prioritize the highest-impact features for initial release.
- You work with both functional and technical experts during the presales process, not just sales teams.
Why the Workshop Process Matters
You've decided to work with a technology partner on a custom software development, cloud transformation, or data engineering project. The project is complex. The investment is significant. And you need confidence that your partner can deliver a solution that aligns with your vision while matching your budget.
Here's the problem: most consulting engagements start with a sales pitch, a rough estimate, and a contract. You don't really know what you're getting until you're already committed. Requirements get discovered mid-project. Scope changes. Budgets balloon. What you thought you were buying and what you actually get don't match.
Our workshop process addresses this. It takes place before any commitment is made by either party. It's designed to build understanding and trust between our team and yours and make sure we're all on the same page about what we're building, why we're building it, and what it will take to get there.
At the end of the process, you'll have a detailed understanding of our proposed solution, the scope and timeline of the project, and the estimated cost. You can plan for the project internally, budget for it properly, and make an informed decision about whether to move forward.
This isn't a pitch from the sales team. You'll work with our engineers and other experts who have deep experience completing projects like yours. You'll walk away with a tailored proposal that tells you everything you need to know to decide how to move forward.
Step 1: The Workshop
The first workshop is where we develop a deep understanding of your needs and objectives. You'll meet with a cross-functional team from Emergent Software: not just salespeople, but the people who will actually work on your project if you decide to move forward.
Your Organization and the Opportunity
We start by learning what makes your organization unique. What industry are you in? What does your business model look like? Who are your customers? Then we dig into the opportunity you want to capitalize on. Where are you now, and where would you like to be?
This part of the workshop is about understanding your pain points. What's working? What's not? Why is this project important to you? What happens if you don't do it?
Key Objectives
Once we understand your organization and the opportunity, we work together to create a list of key objectives. This defines what success looks like for your organization and enables us to focus on what matters most.
We might rework this list a few times until we're aligned on what we're trying to accomplish. In later steps, we'll prioritize which objectives need to be met for the initial release and which ones we can address in future phases.
Current and Ideal Future State
Next, we work with your key stakeholders to understand the details. This includes systems, process flows, user types and personas, integrations, data and reporting needs, technology constraints, regulatory requirements, hosting considerations, and project constraints.
To accomplish this, we use a variety of techniques including user interviews, contextual interviews, story mapping, and defining epics and key features. We're not documenting every detail at this stage, but we're building a comprehensive picture of what needs to happen.
Backlog Draft
Based on everything we've learned, we create a high-level draft backlog that prioritizes the epics and key features. An epic is a high-level initiative that can be broken into smaller building blocks. This backlog becomes the foundation for planning and estimation.
Project Size Approximation
Finally, we provide an approximation of project size in terms of cost and time. This is not a quote or a feature-level estimate, it's a ballpark to make sure we're aligned before investing more time in detailed planning.
Step 2: Designing the Solution
Once we understand your goals and requirements, we work internally to design a solution. This happens behind the scenes. You're not involved in every conversation, but everything we produce is informed by what we learned in Step 1.
Solution Vision
The solution vision is a visual representation of what the solution will accomplish. It shows how the platform we're creating or enhancing will work and how it aligns with your key objectives.
Technology Plan
The technology plan outlines what will be needed to deliver the solution vision. This includes architecture decisions, platform choices, integration approaches, and any technical considerations that will impact delivery.
Backlog for Estimation
Based on the solution vision and technology plan, we add to and update the backlog we created in Step 1. This version is more detailed and becomes the basis for accurate estimation.
Revised Budget and Timeline
In Step 1, we created a project size approximation. Now we revisit that approximation with more information. We use this to inform our delivery planning and provide a more accurate budget and timeline.
Step 3: Solution Vision Presentation
In this step, we meet again to present our solution vision for your project. The goal is to make sure we're aligned on the proposed plan, our understanding of the scope, and how we intend to collaborate.
Requirements Diagram
We present a visual representation of the project requirements and discuss how we'll meet each high-priority objective. This makes it easy to see how all the pieces fit together.
Architecture Considerations
The project architect explains the factors they're considering, including how the architecture supports the key objectives we defined earlier. This might include a high-level visual representation of the planned architecture.
How We Work Together
Finally, we walk through the process for collaborating on your project. This includes team composition, each party's role in the process, communication cadence, and how we'll handle changes and feedback.
Step 4: Getting Started
If you decide to work with Emergent Software, we send you a Statement of Work (SOW) to sign and a detailed list of features and epics for your project. Nothing in these documents should be a surprise, we've discussed it all thoroughly throughout the workshop process.
At this point, you have full transparency into what we're building, how we're building it, what it will cost, and when you can expect to see results. You can move forward with confidence.
What Sets Our Process Apart
How you first engage with a potential partner sets the tone for the entire project. Here's what makes our process different.
We Take Time to Understand Your Business
We spend more time learning about your business and your needs than many other consultants do. Our workshop process is built on the idea that we need to thoroughly understand your organization, your industry, and your opportunity in order to deliver the best product. That understanding can't be rushed.
We Focus on Time to Value
We're not trying to create the biggest, most expensive project we can. Our goal is to deliver value to your business as soon as possible. We work with you to identify the highest priority items to include in the initial release. Then, over the course of a long-term partnership, we continue to enhance the product and add new features as needed.
You Work with the People Who Will Build Your Solution
During the workshop process, you work with both functional experts who understand business processes and technical professionals who understand what's under the hood. These aren't just salespeople — they're the analysts, architects, and engineers who will actually work on your project if you decide to move forward.
We Build Flexibility into the Engagement
Requirements will change. New requirements will be discovered during the process. That's inevitable. We're always willing to adjust and work with you throughout the project to ensure the end product is what you actually need, not just what we agreed to at the beginning.
How Emergent Software Can Help
We specialize in custom software development, cloud transformation, data engineering, and website development. Whether you're building a new application from scratch, modernizing legacy systems, or migrating to Azure, our workshop process ensures we understand your needs before you commit. We also offer DevOps services and ongoing managed services to support your solutions after they're built.
If this sounds familiar, we can help.
Final Thoughts
Complex technology projects require significant investment. The difference between a successful project and a costly failure often comes down to alignment at the beginning. Do you and your partner actually understand what needs to be built? Are you aligned on priorities, budget, and timeline? Do you trust each other to navigate the inevitable challenges that arise during delivery?
Our workshop process addresses these questions before you sign a contract. You get transparency into our proposed solution, clarity on what it will take to deliver it, and confidence that we understand your business and your goals. We get the information we need to design a solution that actually works and deliver it successfully.
If you're ready to start a technology project with a partner who takes the time to understand your needs, Emergent Software is here to help. Reach out, we'd love to learn more about your goals.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does the workshop process typically take?
The workshop process typically takes two to four weeks, depending on project complexity and stakeholder availability. Step 1 usually involves one or two full-day workshops, though we can break these into shorter sessions if that works better for your team. After the initial workshop, we spend one to two weeks working internally on the solution design. The solution vision presentation in Step 3 is usually a half-day meeting. The entire process is designed to move quickly while still giving us the depth of understanding we need to propose an effective solution.
Is there a cost for the workshop process?
For most projects, we absorb the cost of the workshop process as part of our presales effort. We invest this time because it benefits both parties — you get clarity before committing, and we get the information we need to deliver successfully. For very large or complex engagements, we may propose a paid discovery phase, but we're always transparent about costs upfront. The goal is to remove barriers to alignment, not create new ones.
What if we decide not to move forward after the workshop?
That's perfectly fine. The workshop process is designed to help both parties make an informed decision. If you conclude that the project isn't the right fit — whether due to budget, timeline, priorities, or any other reason — we part ways with no hard feelings. You'll still have the insights and documentation from the workshop, which can inform your strategy even if you pursue a different approach. Our goal is alignment, not closing a sale at any cost.
Who from our organization needs to participate in the workshop?
We typically need key stakeholders who understand the business problem, the current processes, and the desired outcomes. This often includes executives who own the business case, managers who understand day-to-day operations, technical leads who know your current systems, and end users who will actually use the solution. The exact composition depends on your project, but we'll work with you during initial conversations to identify the right participants.
How detailed is the estimate you provide at the end of the workshop process?
By the end of the workshop process, you'll have a detailed estimate broken down by epic and major feature area. This estimate includes both cost and timeline, with enough detail to support budgeting and planning. It's not a final fixed-price quote — that level of precision isn't possible without even more detailed requirements — but it's significantly more accurate than the rough approximation we provide at the end of Step 1. Most clients find the estimate accurate enough to move forward with confidence.
Can the workshop process be done remotely, or does it need to be in person?
We can conduct the workshop process either remotely or in person, depending on your preference and circumstances. Remote workshops work well with the right tools and facilitation techniques. In-person workshops can be valuable for building relationships and enabling spontaneous collaboration, especially for complex projects. We're flexible and will adapt our approach to what works best for your team. The quality of the outcome doesn't depend on the format — it depends on the quality of the conversation and the expertise of the participants.
