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What the discover phase is about
Discover is about learning what’s actually true. You talk to people, observe real situations, and test assumptions before committing to a solution. Assumptions can help, but treat them as ideas to test with real data.
The main question you're answering is "what's actually true about users, needs, and risks?"
What you're trying to avoid
Making decisions based on guesses or internal opinions. In this phase, do not:
- Build full solutions
- Make final user interface decisions
- Lock in scope too early
- Launch
What to expect
- Talk to customers and staff
- Observe workflows
- Test assumptions
- Explore multiple directions
- Identify risks
- Reduce uncertainty
Discover plays
- Measure parts of an experience
Measure how easy specific tasks are for people to complete. - Measure an entire system
Measure how easy and useful a full service or system is. - Understand a process
Map how a service works from start to finish to find gaps and risks. - Plan for learning
Define what you want to learn and how you will do the research. - Interview people impacted
Talk to people to understand their real experiences and needs. - Make sense of what you learn
Turn research findings into clear insights to guide decisions.