Concept Development

We assist you in creating your requirement specifications

The Concept…

…the most important cornerstone for your web application

You are the experts in your business and have a clear vision of what your web application should accomplish. Web developers are the experts in technical implementation. A concept is the key to bridging these two worlds.

Creating a clearly understandable concept requires time and experience. It must be technically detailed enough for developers to know what to implement, yet simple and clear enough for you, the client, to understand what you will receive.

We have experience in analyzing complex business processes and can structure and describe them in a way that they can be turned into a web application. Whether the application is ultimately developed by us or the concept serves as a foundation for a public tender, we’ve got you covered.

Kick-off

At the start of the concept phase, it is essential to understand the requirements and goals of the web application. Depending on the project’s scope and complexity, this can vary in effort. Sometimes there is already a rough list of requirements and a few sketches; other times, the project is still very vague, and the requirements need to be developed from scratch.

In any case, it is important that we discuss your idea together and develop a shared understanding. For complex projects, it may be beneficial to work out the requirements in a workshop. For smaller projects, a phone call or a meeting might suffice.

Any existing materials, such as process descriptions, data, design guidelines, or even prototypes and legacy applications will be reviewed and incorporated into the concept phase.

Often at this stage, it is also helpful to define a rough budget limit to check the feasibility of the requirements and, if necessary, prioritize them.

Concept

Based on the insights gained during the kickoff, we draft the concept. Typically, the concept consists of the following parts:

Research

Sometimes, neither we nor the client have all the necessary information. In such cases, we conduct research to gather the required information. This can include legal frameworks, technical possibilities, or existing solutions.

Entities

Entities describe the different types of data and information processed in the application. Entities can be users, products, orders, invoices, etc. The concept includes a detailed description of all identified entities with their properties and their relations to each other. This description forms the foundation for the subsequent database structure and helps developers understand the application better. The entity list also establishes a shared vocabulary that all project participants can understand.

Mockups

Mockups are graphic views of each component of the future application. They serve as visual templates for development and ensure that the planned workflow of the new software meets the client’s expectations. The representation is purely functional and not a design specification. Developing an appropriate design language is part of the subsequent development process.

Modules

The mockups and entities are supplemented with detailed descriptions of all the application’s modules. A module is a unit of the application that fulfills a specific task. This can be a single view, such as a product list or a form, or an overarching functionality of the application, like user management or multilingual mechanisms.

Workflows and Data Flows

In addition to entities, mockups, and modules, we also describe the application’s workflows and data flows. A workflow outlines the sequence of steps a user takes to complete a specific task. Data flows describe how data is processed within the application and exchanged between different modules.

Interfaces

Depending on the application, it may be necessary for it to communicate with other systems. In such cases, we describe the interfaces to these systems, including the design of any public or internal APIs.

Handover and Implementation Start

After completing the concept phase, we will present the detailed concept to you. We will explain each part and answer your questions. Any potential changes you request will be incorporated into the concept.

You will then receive the final concept as a PDF document. This document contains all the information necessary for developing the web application. It provides a detailed description of functionalities, the user interface, and technical requirements, while remaining software and technology-independent. The concept is structured in a way that allows other developers to understand and implement it.

Of course, if you wish, we would be happy to provide you with an offer for the web application’s development. The service description in the offer will be based on the concept and will include the effort estimations, technical details, and a timeline for implementation.

If you commission the development, the concept will serve as the foundation for the software documentation. This ensures that you will have complete documentation of your web application from the very beginning.

Contact

Are you looking to develop a web application and need a partner to assist you with concept development? Then you’ve come to the right place.

+49 30 8145040 - 83 gohr@cosmocode.de