Written by Praneen Shakya, Solution Architect at Leapfrog Technology
The journey from discovery to design in any product development process is a critical phase that ensures success. One of the most overlooked yet essential steps in this process is creating a Technical Blueprint Checklist. This checklist acts as a bridge between understanding user needs and implementing feasible, well-designed solutions.
This blog provides an overview of what a technical blueprint checklist is, why it is required, key elements in the checklist, and a sample checklist to guide you through the Discovery and Design journey.
Technical blueprint checklist for scalable software
A technical blueprint is the software equivalent of an engineering diagram for buildings. It helps you navigate the solution’s architecture and its intricate details during execution.
A technical blueprint checklist is a carefully curated list of items that we shouldn’t overlook while composing a technical blueprint.
Let's take an example of building a house. An engineer designs the rooms, adds electrical wiring, walls, doors and windows, but forgets to account for the wall switches.
You might think that this will not create much trouble as electricians usually remember to install switches when laying out wiring. However, even a single oversight like this during execution can create unexpected chaos and complications.
Now, imagine a similar mistake happening at scale: ten tweaks across ten different areas will create chaos and inefficiencies. This is why most of the big buildings get abandoned due to lack of meticulous design.
The stakes are even higher in case of software development because software products are virtual rather than physical. Every detail in the technical blueprint must be precisely accounted for to avoid software issues.
That’s why we need to have a comprehensive technical blueprint checklist to ensure every detail is captured during the Discovery and Design journey. The checklist will prevent things from being missed out ensuring scalable and reliable software development.
Must-haves in your technical blueprint checklist
Functional and nonfunctional requirements
Clearly define what the system should do (functional requirements) by specifying its features, behaviors, and capabilities to meet user needs. For non-functional requirements, define how a system should perform, focusing on quality attributes like reliability, scalability, performance, and usability.
Data flow diagrams
Include a data flow diagram which maps out how input data flows from one step to the other, gets processed in the way, and ultimately ends up with the output.
ER diagram
Visualize the system’s data structure—what entities exist, their attributes, and how they relate. This is crucial for designing an efficient, scalable database.
Story breakdown and prioritization
Break user stories into smaller, manageable tasks and rank them according to the importance and urgency to maximize value delivery and to align with project goals.
User journey
Visualize step-by-step interactions and experiences that a user goes through to achieve a specific goal within a system, over a period of time.
C4 model
Use this framework to visualize software architecture across four levels: Context, Container, Component, and Code. Detailed elaboration on C4 can be read in my other article here.
High-level architecture diagram
Incorporate an overview of a system’s structure, showcasing its main software components, their interactions, and external integrations without delving into implementation details.
Cloud architecture diagram
If your software uses cloud, illustrate the components, services, and interactions within a cloud-based system, including servers, databases, storage, networking, and integrations with cloud providers.
Architecture diagram
Document key architectural decisions - context, rationale and outcomes- made during a project’s development. Icepanel is a great tool that combines the C4 model, workflows, and acts as a long-term ADR.
API design
Define the structure, endpoints, data format, and behaviors of an API. Ensure it is intuitive, efficient, and aligned with the needs of the users and system architecture.
Proof of concept plan
Having a proof of concept plan will help you validate the feasibility of a solution or idea. Focus on validating key technical aspects, assumptions, or concepts with minimal resources and effort.
Minimum viable product plan
Have a minimum viable product plan which is the simplest version of a product that includes only the essential features necessary to satisfy early adopters and validate assumptions, allowing for feedback and iteration.
Cloud component capacity planning
Estimate and manage the required resources (such as compute, storage, and network) to handle expected workloads, traffic, and growth while maintaining performance and cost-efficiency.
Infrastructure cost estimation
Predict the financial costs associated with the resources needed to run an IT infrastructure, including compute, storage, networking, and services, often factoring in scalability, usage patterns, and cloud provider pricing models.
Task estimations
Estimate the time, effort, and resources required to complete a specific task or set of tasks, typically used in project management to plan and allocate resources effectively.
Staff plan
Outline required personnel for a project or organization, detailing roles, responsibilities, skills, and the timeline for hiring or allocating staff to ensure the project's successful execution.
Project timeline
Create a visual representation of the project’s schedule, outlining key milestones, tasks, and deadlines, helping to track progress and ensure timely delivery of deliverables.
Get started with a sample checklist
With over 10 years in the software industry, I’ve helped uncover requirements for hundreds of clients, each project revealing unique needs but often centered around a few core requirements. Identifying these, exploring them, and crafting a roadmap to execution defines the Discovery-to-Design journey.
The checklist below provides a sample to start your Discovery and Design journey, which can be customized as per the project scope and requirements.
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