15 best practices for software development projects

Software is one of the important pillars of modern society, whether for work, business or pleasure. Both children and adults have a strong reliance on technology that is based on robust and robust software applications and services. This dependency is based on ensuring that software applications and utilities are secure and reliable.

From the other perspective, the software development industry evolves very quickly, given the demand and opportunities offered by the market in the form of unmet needs. There is a lot of competition as many software development companies like GoodCore are trying to develop their own solutions to take their share of the cake.

Unfortunately, many painstaking and meticulous efforts go into the rubbish bin in software development. Several industry sources point out that approximately 80% of software projects are unsuccessful because of bad forecasts, highly improved project executions, limited budgets and resources, or inappropriate functionality.

Best practices for software development projects checklist

Fortunately, however, there are a large number of successful cases. We can always learn from the approach using them and that can be very useful to us to guarantee to carry out our software developments.

Whether you are developing a new software product, making upgrades, upgrades or maintenance of existing software or If you are looking to hire a software development company or a developer. it is advisable to consider the best practices listed below and make sure the software development company you are considering strictly follow these practices:

# 1. Select talent and appropriate resources

Capturing and selecting human talent with the necessary skills and relevant experience is vital to ensure project success. It is important to assign the appropriate job to the right person.

On the other hand, investing in tools that increase the productivity and efficiency of the development team is very important. Good equipment, modern hardware, software and development platforms and up-to-date testing and automated tools help the team to print all their knowledge and best practices to ensure a solid, reliable and robust product.

# 2. Choosing the Appropriate Design and Development Process

The software development lifecycle has a strong dependence on the chosen process. The cascade model, the agile methodology, the spiral iterative approach, are all contrasted ways of achieving success. The difficulty is in choosing which methodology best suits each type of project.

this is really important. Effective adherence and the fact to apply to the chosen methodology, is what determines the project to be successful. It is sometimes good to make a small prototype to assess viability or research new technologies.

# 3. Make Reasonable Budgets and Estimates

Many projects fail or stretch in time to make unrealistic estimates. Reasonable planning depends on setting time, budget, resources and effort well . It is best to use proven estimation and budgeting techniques. Trying to tighten estimates to try to shorten a project usually ends in catastrophe.

# 4. Set smaller milestones

Major projects and milestones should be complemented by mini-milestones to enable better monitoring, better control and better risk management, and in general to mitigate incidents in a more controlled way. Team members should meet to set these mini-milestones and align them with the big milestones to meet deadlines and reduce the delays that may arise due to the inter dependencies of assigned tasks.

# 5. Define the requirements well

Effectively documenting requirements is the backbone in order to align the end product with business objectives. It is imperative that all parties (clients, managers and team leaders) meet to document requirements in a clear and concise manner, leaving no room for gaps or improvisation.

It is necessary to define the basic requirements, derivatives and implicit, both functional and non-functional. The functionality can be obtained through use-case scenarios. Performance, fail-safe, system, design, and architecture requirements must all be well documented and taken into account.

# 6. Define System Architecture

A good application architect will ensure an appropriate system architecture choice, taking into account both requirements and constraints, if any. Good practices such as identifying threats and anti-patterns within the system are very useful.

# 7. Optimize your application design

The design must be modular and optimized . Balancing and distributing functionality across multiple modules can make the project work well or break. An object-oriented approach is a technique that ensures modularity. It is up to the designers to ensure that the chosen approach is applied well in order to achieve maximum cohesion with minimal coupling. Code reuse is often under-utilized in the application design, and if well implemented, can save a lot of effort and reduce costs over time in any project.

# 8. Implement the code effectively

The use of smaller modules that are self-tested, unit-tested and continuously integrated is a widespread good practice. The automation of build tools and the automated execution of regression tests for each included functionality is recommended to ensure that the functionality already implemented does not break.

# 9. Rigorous testing and validation

The planning of tests, the creation of sets of tests and the execution of them are very important in order to validate the developed functionality . In fact, testing planning should be done in parallel with the development phase. Equally important is the documentation we make of the tests, effectively reporting errors, tracking errors and correcting them. The use of automated tools as well as proven processes that ensure that errors are identified at the earliest possible stage and resolved at the lowest cost.

Unit testing, integration testing, functional testing, system testing, and performance testing are some types of testing. Each test level requires your expertise, planning and execution.

# 10. Documentation

Even though the software itself is important, all the documentation on which it is based – the project plan, requirements and specifications, High Level Design (HLD), Low Level Design (LLD), test plans, reports Of the tests, status reports and documentation for users.

Often these documents are part of the deliverable specified by the customer or the parties interested in a particular project. These documents help ensure software understanding, traceability and eliminate reliance on the original development team. They may be used as reference in the future by other people who need to maintain, improve or use the software.

# 11. Schedule code review sessions

Code revisions are often more effective, and certainly less expensive, to find errors than if we just do tests. Reviews of all deliverable, code and documentation is something that should always be done.

These sessions of revision of the code, its management and the resolution of conflicts that can occur in the same ones are done following a series of contrasted techniques and good practices. Both peer review and peer review are always helpful.

# 12. Ensure management of control of software sources

The use of effective source code management and documentation, so that they are controlled according to the version, is fundamental to be able to maintain traceability and controlled reversal of the code if necessary. In the market there is much software available for this type of tasks.

# 13. Quality Control

Quality control helps to push forward development projects without major disruptions and more quickly. From fault detection to the establishment of key metrics, best practices in this field have proven to be successful in determining whether a project is able to move to a new phase or is ready to be released or delivered to client.

Metrics and targets should be set to ensure that requirements, design, code, tests and other tasks are coordinated and alienated.

# 14. Effective Installation and Deployment

On many occasions when we have already tried the door-to-door software and everything is going well, suddenly the project fails at the customer’s home or when we are in the implementation and deployment phase. It is very important to have a good deployment plan and make a list as a checklist to avoid disasters.

# 15. Support and Maintenance Strategy

Even when the deployed software is up and running, there must be a pre-designed, thought-out support and maintenance process in order to effectively report and report errors and improvements to the development team.

The 15 best practices for software development projects mentioned above are widely used in all types of software companies that have development teams, to a greater or lesser extent and we also do strictly adhere these practices. Obviously there are many factors that limit or enable the implementation of such good practices: resources, budgets, etc.

Content Source: https://www.geeksprogramming.com/best-practices-for-software-development-projects/

Modern Web Application Development: Top 6 Highly Preferred Principles

Web application development has changed a lot over a decade because now it is driven by the latest technology trends. Software development practices, tips and tactics that software developers were applying in the past no longer make sense because the new digital era has entirely sprung up.

Have you ever wondered what makes a software developer productive?

The answer could be as simple as the question seems, the dedication of a developer, knowledge of the latest tactics, and expertise in the specific technology. But the reality is completely different from my friend. In the web application development productivity has often been considered with speed. Still, this isn’t right to co-relate speed with productivity.

Let me explain this with an example: if a software developer is completing the given task in half of the time than expected, then the developer can be considered as productive, right? Still, I will say it depends because a productive developer is a one who has expertise in building applications in the right way and in the most efficient manner possible. So, productivity stands for speed along with quality.

How to build an application?

Let me explain it in a simple term. A quality application is one that is developed considering the present as well as future needs. The app is developed solving the user’s long-term needs, changing technology and it can scale as the business grows and it is easily maintainable.

To build a quality application, it requires an in-detail understanding of modern 6 principles of web application development. The listed principles have undoubtedly helped our skilled developers to create successful applications to meet the user’s present as well as future needs. It’s not a comprehensive list, but considering these 6 principles can surely help you hail on the ride of success either with a web app, mobile app, analytical dashboard or a web app.

Principle #1: User First

Web has evolved initially; earlier it was tools, then technologies and now devices have emerged. However, there is one principle that has remained the same is user experience. When it comes to focus on the user experience, there is a question that is often overlooked is who wants this? Identifying the answer to this question will help you understand the purpose. Instead of looking at it as an application, you will start developing it as a solution for a specific problem. Once the purpose is identified then go for great user experience. Because its user experience that keeps any users loyal to the brand and a product.

Principle #2: Security is a Significant Part of the Development Process

When it comes to web application security, it is tested through common vulnerabilities like SQL Injection, cross-site scripting and others. Everyone knows the importance of security, but still prevent security vulnerabilities. In my 15 years of experience, I have seen the majority of the developers adding security as a feature in the last stage. Still, in the modern web application, it is built from the first stage, design and architecture include all the security aspects to avoid any financial and reputation costs associated with data losses, downtime, and vulnerability discoveries.

Principle #3: Tools: Web Developer’s Best Friend

Any client wants to bring their product idea to the market faster. One the other hand, security and significant features should not be sacrificed. Adopting the tools can help to speed up the development process. This is the reason there is a significant growth in the development tools, and developers are accessing libraries, frameworks and templates and using IDE’s, GitHub, and low-code development platforms as an ever-evolving skill set to bridge the skills gap.

Principle #4: Web Application Architecture

You shouldn’t catch up in the interface, because architecture also plays a significant role in building an application. Architecture is an inevitable part, but it impacts security, flexibility, maintenance, scalability and more. Building a sound architecture will take some time, but it is essential for building a long-lasting application.

Planning an application architecture is beyond its initial requirements. What if you have to switch to a different server? What if the app requires more features? What happens if it does not support the number of users than you have considered? So, build an architecture considering all the possibilities and future aspects.

Principle #5: Change is Constant

Web is continuously advancing with new tools, new technologies and frameworks as it is being introduced on a regular basis. This progression leads to efficient development. For the software developer it has become mandatory to keep the app with the latest security features. Modern web applications are never complete because developers have to continually update their apps to adapt security trends and considering the changing trends.

Principle #6: Separation of Concerns

Earlier developers were following a monolithic approach to implement new features directly into the application. The only issue with this approach was maintenance, because a minor change in a small area can make or break other applications. Sometimes apps were becoming unmanageable.

Modern web application architecture has a separation of concerns that separates the application into layers to enhance the application’s layer separately. In case, if you want to improve the application’s UI and UX, then take help of multilayered architecture to replace it without interrupting the other layers.

Wrapping Up

There could be numbers of modern web application principles, but I have only listed those whom I found absolutely necessary. The above 6 principles ensure that your software is stable and ready to scale.

Content Source: https://www.technosip.com/modern-web-application-development-top-6-highly-preferred-principles/

What Is Offshore Software Development and How to Do It Right

Many software companies across North America and Western Europe are starting to evaluate offshore software development company UK or worldwide and how it can help them to achieve their business goals. For those who consider this approach for the next project, we’re providing a detailed explanation of this outsourcing model. Here you’ll find more about its advantages and disadvantages and a few simple tips that will make a search for the reliable service provider a bit easier.


When starting a new software development project, many companies are used to involving not only their in-house teams or developers in their countries but also the ones from all over the world. This kind of cooperation has justified itself and resulted in the benefits for both sides. It is clear that outsourcing is an inevitable part of software engineering. Here comes another question what is offshore software development. In short, this term has the same meaning as the regular outsourcing but with the indication of the geographical distance between the customer and the provider.

List of the contents:

• Difference between offshore, nearshore and onshore

• Offshore software development firms and their typical service

• Pros and cons of this model

• Remote product development and how to do it right

• How to choose the service provider

• Conclusion

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OFFSHORE, NEARSHORE, AND ONSHORE

Considering the geographical standpoint, outsourcing can be presented by onshore, nearshore and offshore development services.

Onshore

When the company decides to hire software developers within their own country, it is onshore outsourcing. They find this option rather convenient and approachable. For instance, the company can choose the provider just from the different regions of their country.

Nearshore

Nearshore service is characterized by a similar time zone. For this reason, providers will be chosen from the neighboring countries. The customers count on cultural similarity and geographic proximity. In particular, Western European countries have the nearshore choice among Eastern European ones such as Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, etc.. The USA customers can apply for the providers in the nearest neighbor Mexico. In case they decide to choose other Latin American countries, it will not be called nearshore one.

Offshore

Therefore offshore software development indicates that the company of providers is located in a foreign country far away from your country. It can be even a different continent thus the customers might face the notable time zone difference. Fortunately, nowadays it is not a problem at all. North American and Western European companies successfully collaborate with providers from all over the world.

In this article, we have prepared the explanation and overview of offshore development services, its advantages and disadvantages, and how to choose services provider.

Content Source: https://medium.com/existek/what-is-offshore-software-development-and-how-to-do-it-right-94a96cd569e4

How Do Free Mobile Apps Make Money?

Do you have an idea for a free mobile application but you doubt whether it's worth investing? How do free apps make money?

Your doubts are quite clear: mobile IOS / android app development requires a lot of time (typically, several months) and, more importantly, money. Before kicking off the development process, you should clearly understand how you’ll recoup your investments and how to make money with apps in 2020.

We’ve decided to help you get your idea off the ground and show how exactly you can make money on free apps.

Free Apps Grossing Big Bucks

According to Sensotower, the App Store and Google Play users spent a total of $39.7 billion on mobile apps and games during the first half of 2019. This is a huge market you don’t want to miss out on

If you think that it’s the paid apps that bring the lion’s share of this huge revenue, you’re wrong. In fact, if you check the list of the top grossing mobile applications (including games) in the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store, you’ll notice they’re all free.

The vast majority of users on all continents prefer free mobile applications. In fact, the number of free app downloads is constantly rising. Statistics provided by Sensotower show that in the first half of 2019, free mobile apps downloads in Google Play increased by 16,4 percent and made up $41,9 billion. Whilst the App Store lost 1,4 percent in downloads. However, the overall tendency remains positive.

Image source: Sensotower

Developing a free mobile app is definitely the right business strategy.

Before shedding light on how to make money with apps, we’d like to draw your attention to another matter: correct app presentation. Remember that users must be able to quickly find your app and understand what it’s designed for.

Incite User Interest Through Accurate App Packaging

As of the second quarter of 2019, there were 2.46 million apps (of all types) in the Google Play Store and 1.96 million in the Apple App Store. The competition is really strong!

How many users will find your free mobile app? How many of them will download it? No matter how good your app is and what monetization methods you use, you may still fail to attract customers without a clear app packaging.

Potential users of your app should be able to quickly find it through search in the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. To make your mobile app visible and easy to find, you should provide it with an attention-grabbing name, an informative description, and screenshots.

Here are tips that will help you create a top-class app description:

Choose a Clear and Catchy App Name

Your mobile app should have a snappy name that reflects its major functions. Though many applications have names that convey nothing about their functionality, your app is likely to attract a lot more users if it has a name that hints at what it does. It’s particularly useful to include keywords in the app name.

In general, the name of your app shouldn’t be too long – 100 characters at most. Think carefully about the name, as it’s the first thing people see and pay attention to when they’re considering whether your application is worth downloading.

Come up With an Informative App Description

The next step is to provide your app with a meaningful and informative description.

The first several sentences (up to the “Read More” or “More” buttons) of an app description should give general information and illustrate the app’s main idea. This part mustn’t be long – up to 225 characters. Few people read further, so make sure to tailor this part of the app description to perfection.

Make Eye-Catching App Screenshots

An app’s name and description are important, but users want to know how your app will look on their mobile devices. That’s why you should include several screenshots – and make sure you pick the best.

We recommend that you add some text to your screenshots, describing some functions of your application.

As you can see, this screenshot shows that the app can work on smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches.

Note that Uber uses verbs in their screenshot descriptions, which is the correct approach. Verbs are the parts of speech used to describe actions.

People are more likely to act (i.e. to download your free mobile app) if they see verbs.

How to make money with free apps?

Now that you know how to package a five-star app, we can move on to explaining the strategies you can leverage to make money on free apps.

Strategy #1: In-App Purchases

In-app purchases is an extremely popular strategy used by thousands of apps in both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. In-app purchases allow users to buy something right in the app.

There are three major types of in-app purchases:

• Consumable. Consumables are products that a user can use only once: for example, virtual money or health points. Such in-app purchases are usually used in mobile games.
• Non-consumable. Non-consumables are features that users buy for permanent use: for example, additional functions or ad blocking (this is how free apps make money without ads).
• Subscriptions. Your mobile application may offer subscriptions that unlock some content or functions for a certain period of time. Subscriptions can be either non-renewing or automatically renewing.

Strategy #2: In-App Ads

• Ads are a driving force of the global market. They’re literally everywhere, and mobile apps aren’t an exception. In-app ads are actually tools of affiliate marketing. With in-app ads, you advertise your affiliates’ products (apps, games, etc.) inside your app and get paid if your users interact with those ads.
  There are several types of campaigns used in affiliate marketing, so let’s mention the most popular:
  • Cost per click (CPC). This model means that you get paid for each click on ads displayed in your mobile application. Typically, a single click is nearly worthless, so revenue is calculated on a cost per mille basis (mille is Latin for thousand).
  • Cost per view (CPV). These campaigns are usually applied to video ads. The more times users of your app watch video ads, the higher payout you get.
  • Cost per install (CPI). With this model, you get paid whenever a user of your app installs an advertised application.
  If you wish to monetize your application through ads, there are many networks to work with, such as AdMob and Flurry. Most ad networks support apps on iOS and Android, as well as on some other mobile platforms. Also, don’t forget to check what kinds of campaigns they offer, since you need to understand what exactly you’ll be paid for.
  There are several ways to display ads in your mobile app:
  • Banners. Banner ads usually appear at the top or at the bottom of a screen and have some text and graphics. Banners are considered to be relatively unobtrusive, as users are able to keep using your mobile app even if a banner is active. However, banners have low click-through rates (CTR) and heavily depend on brand recognition (users are far more likely to click if a banner advertises some well-known brand).
• Native. Most people don’t like ads and try to block them completely. How can you reach out to the users of your mobile application, then? Use native ads that don’t really look like ads. Native ads are seamlessly integrated into mobile applications, making them subtle but quite efficient.
• Videos. According to an article by Invesp, the CTR of video ads is 1.84%, so they’re quite effective. Typically, video ads appear automatically when users interact with apps.
• Interstitial. These ads take a whole screen and typically appear when users launch or close an application. However, interstitial ads may also look like pop-ups appearing from time to time.
• Rich media. If you’re wondering what type of in-app ads is the most efficient, here’s the answer: rich media ads that, according to the previously mentioned eMarketer article, show a CTR of 0.44%. Rich media ads use multiple methods to reach out to users, including audio, video, text, and more.
• In-app ads allow you to make money off free apps, but this monetization strategy works well only for applications with big audiences. If your app is a startup, don’t expect it to bring big bucks this way.

Strategy #3: Freemium

• To benefit from the freemium monetization strategy, you need a second, paid version of your application. If users like a free version, they’re likely to opt for a paid one that has some extra functions.
  With a freemium model, users are typically offered to upgrade an app to a paid version, and if they agree, they’re directed to an app store.
  For example, have a look at MX Player, a popular video player available on Google Play.
• This monetization option is quite efficient, but you shouldn’t provide too many functions in your free app; otherwise, few users will shell out for the paid one.

Strategy #4: Sponsorship

Finding a sponsor is a really lucrative monetization model. Usually, it works this way: you create a mobile app that gains quite a lot of users, after which you contact a sponsor company and offer to update the design of your app to match the sponsor’s brand.

There are two types of sponsorship deals: you can either split the revenue with your sponsor or receive a monthly sponsorship fee.

The main difficulty of sponsorship is finding a sponsor. Needless to say, your mobile app should be good enough to be interesting to potential funders.

Strategy #5: Email Marketing

Email marketing has always been and still is a powerful money-making strategy. You can leverage this method and ask the users of your mobile app to provide their emails and, later, send them messages.

Adding a Facebook login option to your free app is a great way to subtly collect user emails. However, give users a chance to cancel email notifications, as this will make your app more credible and people will know they won’t be receiving loads of spam.

Tips for Choosing the Best App Monetization Methods

As you can see, there are many ways you can make money from free apps. You can pick one or opt for several strategies at once. However, there are several handy tips that will help you monetize your free app in the most effective way possible.

Consider the Business Goals of Your Free App

Any application has a business goal, which means it helps its users solve their problems. Therefore, you should select a monetization strategy based on your app’s business purpose.

For example, let’s say you wish to create a cool audio player with lots of sound adjustments. Can in-app purchases be an effective profit generating method? Probably not. Instead, you can opt for ads or offer an ad-free version with a subscription.

Or imagine that you launch an educational app. It can offer in-app purchases, such as access to additional functions or paid tips. Needless to say, such apps can contain ads as well.

Define Your Target Audience

You should clearly realize who you’re creating a mobile app for. Draw a user portrait and decide what functionality users need, how much time they’re likely to spend using your app, and so on. A clear picture of your target users allows you to create an app tailored to their needs.

Though your free app may boast large download numbers, the truth is that only a small part of your users (you may call them the money-spending core) will actually bring you profit by clicking on ads or making in-app purchases. The majority of users won’t spend a cent in your app. You may not like it, but that’s how it is in reality. Therefore, set a goal of attracting as many users as possible and do your best to succeed.

Research Your Competitors

If you’re thinking of launching a mobile application, you should carry out a competitor analysis. Explore the app stores you’re going to offer your free app in and search for similar apps. Next, find out what your competitors offer, what kind of designs they have and, more importantly, what monetization methods they use.

This information will help you learn from your competitors’ experiences and see what mistakes they’ve made so you can make your free app better and more helpful to customers. In the end, a better app means higher profits for you as its creator.

Don't Overuse App Monetization Methods

You shouldn’t make your free app inconvenient for users. If it’s full of ads or in-app purchases, your audience may stop using your app and install a similar one. App creators should always remember that their apps bring profits only as long as people use them.

Your users should feel comfortable when using your app, so be prudent and make all ads and offers in your app as subtle as possible.

Now that you know how free apps make money, you can give your idea a go and turn it into a real-life application.

Content Source: https://rubygarage.org/blog/how-do-free-apps-make-money

MVP Is the Key to Agile Project Management

MVP (acronym explained below) is a concept that can improve agile project management planning by ensuring that teams iterate intelligently. To unpack that sentence, let’s back up a little.

Agile project management emerged from the agile software development model, which emphasizes iteration, testing, and incorporating feedback from that testing into the next iteration. Agile “sprints” quickly produce iterations of a software product. The approach focuses on customer experience, collaborative MVP development, and responsiveness to customer feedback.

Agile project management, according to Megan Torrance, chief energy officer at TorranceLearning, is “a way to manage the near-constant change we face in our organizations … with an attitude that expects and accepts change.” But to succeed, it’s not enough to iterate. Iterations have to work; they have to move the team—and product—to the end goal of an eLearning product that enables learners to meet learning and performance goals.

Enter the MVP.

What’s an MVP? It’s a minimum viable product. Torrance describes the MVP as “the simplest thing that could possibly work.”

“The goal is to get a simple version of the solution out into the hands of the users to make sure that you’re on the right track and identify the highest-priority things to do next,” she said.

In essence, the MVP is the “first draft” of a product, and it has to meet the threshold of a successful iteration. A sketch or wireframe is not an iteration. According to Torrance, an iteration has to:

• Do real work,
• Be able to be evaluated, and
• Actually be evaluated…

For the iteration to be evaluated, someone has to use it—and provide feedback. That feedback has to be gathered, studied, and, most importantly, used to improve the next iteration.

In short, the first iteration—the MVP—has to be a reasonable stand-in for the actual product under development.

Without the MVP, all is lost

“The MVP is the thing that actually makes an iterative development process—like agile, LLAMA, or SAM—work,” Torrance said.

That’s not an exaggeration. The idea behind an iterative process is creating a “rough version of a product” with the express purpose of getting feedback on it. There are two enormous benefits, Torrance said:

• It’s easier to make changes to an early “draft” than to a finished product.
• Problems and needed changes are identified “before you’ve burned all your budget and timeline developing the ‘perfect’ finished product.”

“Each cycle of an iterative development process is an opportunity to advance the product both iteratively (making it better) and incrementally (making it more). For an eLearning product, it could be things like fine-tuning scripts and graphics (iteratively) and moving from a script-and-screen draft to a playable online draft (incrementally),” Torrance said.

Defining the MVP

Before defining an MVP, the project team has to clearly define the learning objectives, which are related to the client’s or organization’s business goals. A business goal solves a business problem. Training is not a goal; training is a means to an end—solving the business problem.

Torrance recommends starting by defining an observable goal. “What will I see a successful learner doing on the job after the course?” An observable goal uses an action verb, for example:

• The employee will enter data accurately (then define “accurately”)
• The employee will provide verbal feedback to direct reports
• The employee will make sandwiches (or pack orders or assemble widgets) according to the established process and to meet defined standards

Next, the team has to define what the learners need to know in order to meet the observable goal. That’s what the eLearning will teach them.

Agile project management, like agile software development, encourages working out loud, publicly, collaboratively. Torrance suggests breaking down goals into discrete tasks, and creating task cards—or sticky notes, or lines on a whiteboard—where each task is defined. Tasks should be small, and planners should keep constraints in mind: deadlines, budget, staff schedules—and scope.

Once the goals are clear, planning begins. Plan from big to small, Torrance advises, and work small to large: Define and create the MVP first.

Don’t skimp on user testing

“The biggest mistake I see people making is in not getting their iterations out to actual users,” Torrance said. 

Developers often do testing with the client, with SMEs, or with team members. But that’s not really going to tell them whether the eLearning will work with the people who actually need to use it.

Developing an advisory board or committee, or other group of actual learners—people who might actually use the end product or who closely reflect the abilities and knowledge level of the real learners—is one way to conduct meaningful user testing. Another is creating learner “personas”—archetypes or “learner stories” that capture the business needs and desired performance outcomes of the typical learner.

“Ideally, you should be testing your MVPs with the primary learner persona(s) for your project or as close as you can get. So if you’re building new-hire training, test an MVP on actual new hires, or people who are recent new hires, or the immediate supervisors of new hires,” Torrance said.

For a project to train mentors and their protégés, Torrance said, “Our first iteration was a live ILT [instructor-led training] that we delivered to members of the target audience. We then made adjustments to that ILT course, gave it to the client, then started working on the eLearning courses. We used the ILT version of the course to validate the content and the job aids for the program.”

So, yes, it takes time to do actual user testing, but the whole point of iterative processes—like agile project management and development—is to be responsive to learners’ needs, so it is time well spent. “Perfect is in the eyes of the user, not the developer,” Torrance said. It’s not (only) about whether learners “like” the product or even whether they can pass tests based on the content; it’s about the learners’ performance after completing the eLearning: “Specifically, we’d really like to know if the users can perform the tasks successfully as a result of the training.”

Data gathered by testing the MVP and each successive iteration is used to improve the next version. Project managers generally set the number of iterations at the beginning of the management and development cycle; three iterations is common.

Content Source: https://learningsolutionsmag.com/articles/2308/mvp-is-the-key-to-agile-project-management