The 5 W’s of Rapid Prototyping

How to keep up with technology’s fast-paced evolution

Technology is evolving. As expectations change about the software we use daily, so do product design, user experience, and development patterns. Software companies are forced to rapidly innovate to stay relevant. Innovation requires transformation, transformation requires alignment, and alignment requires a solid foundation around an idea. With the rate of evolution of technology, getting a solid foundation around your transformative idea in the quickest amount of time possible is paramount. Enter the Rapid Prototype (RP).

An RP is a high fidelity, functional proof of concept designed and developed in a single sprint. It is intended to provide a rich user experience and portray an idea to solicit user feedback. An RP is not a guided experience by means of navigating screenshots. To fully engage your target audience, give them the ability to manipulate a form, execute a workflow, or explore on their own.

When Do I Build One?

A Rapid Prototype can be utilized almost anywhere in a business. Since the driving force behind an RP is to convey a message, sales, product, and development organizations can all reap the benefits.

· Sales — If an RFP requires functionality that your company does not currently offer, you can utilize a Rapid Prototype to show a potential solution. An RP is particularly powerful to the sales organization because it shows the client out for bid that your company can quickly assemble and respond to challenges. It instills confidence in your ability to innovate on the fly.

· Product — When your company is beginning to explore the idea of a new application, an RP is the logical next step after a Working Backwards session. The Working Backwards session will align the stakeholders on vision, and the RP will solidify expectations on visuals and user experience.

· Development — A new major feature to an existing system that would disrupt the current state should be vetted out with an RP. Maintaining and expanding existing/legacy systems is expensive and often limited in possibilities due to architecture constraints. Visualizing disruptive changes before beginning the development enables you to catch…