<aside> 📋 TL;DR: As soon as you are onboarded, you should start the feature scoping process. Once this is finished and approved, then begin working on your product backlog. Once the developers get onboarded, begin the “Getting Ready For Development” section, then start your program increment!

Feature Scoping Process

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<aside> 📅 You should start this as soon as you’re onboarded.

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This section hopes to provide you with a framework on how you can start a project from scratch, and where to get support when you need it. Getting the project ready for development is not an easy task, so be prepared!

Each section will start with a title, followed by a brief overview, then if a meeting is involved, it will be described in the meeting description

Over the course of the project, we have wonderful executives and experienced mentors here to support you! They will serve an important role in making sure that you and your team is making good progress. There will be frequent communications between you and the VP of Software Engineering on the technical side of the project, as well as communications between you, your product designers and VP of Design on the design aspects. When in doubt, or when you feel lost, reach out to them!

1. What are we doing here?

<aside> 📌 The first step of any project is to figure out what is it that you are building. This will happen in your first meeting with the NPO. The VP of Software Engineering and VP of Design are expected to be present. Project scoping is a long and tiring process, so bare with us! There is a lot of stuff you need to do and be aware of, but if you are here, we have faith that you can do it! We have provided a framework for you to follow below. Please use them if you aren’t sure what to talk about!

Your First NPO Meeting

Feature Scoping Document

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<aside> 📅 Who should be in this meeting?

• Project Lead(s)
• Designer
• Representative(s) from NPO
• One VP of Software Engineering
• VP of Design What is this meeting for?
• Introductions ****- Brainstorm project ideas How long should this meeting be?jk
• 30 minutes

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• Before the meeting, research your non-profits, who they are, what they stand for, and think about how can software help their mission. You should have a few ideas in mind in case the NPO representative doesn’t know what they want.
• If the NPO already has an idea in mind, awesome! Have a brief discussion on what the application is expected to do (this can be a very brief, 20-min high-level conversation) and give a high-level estimate on if the project is feasible.
• If the NPO doesn’t know what they want, then we need to brainstorm some ideas for them and propose these ideas to the NPO. During this process, you need to keep in mind the difficulty of the project, and whether it’s feasible for a minimal viable product(MVP) to be completed over the two semesters.
  • Taking from design thinking tactics, to begin the brainstorm session, it’s important that you identify the target audience. The most likely target audiences with pain points would be the internal administration team for the NPO, or the people that they serve. It’s a good idea to start there and see what potential ideas you can brainstorm.

2. Initial Discussion

<aside> 📌 Here is your first project discussion with your VPs! Don’t be nervous, this will be quick! This meeting should happen right after the first meeting with your NPO. Discuss the idea with your VP. The role of the VP at this stage is to provide direction and serve as a safety rail and ensure that you guys are not wildly off course!

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<aside> 📅 Who should be in this meeting?

• Project Lead(s)
• Designer
• One VP of Software Engineering
• VP of Design What is this meeting for?
• See below How long should this meeting be?
• 30 minutes

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During this meeting (30-min), you should discuss the following points:

• Recap on what is the project? Is this a web app or a mobile app?
• What are some potential features?
• Is the composition of your team a good suite for this project?
• What are some of the challenges you are expecting?
• What is the next step? (VP will be helping you on this, or just keep reading below 👇)