Delivery Playbook · Lifecycle
The five-stage lifecycle
Discover, Design, Build, Verify, Operate: how work flows from problem to production and back.
Every engagement follows the same five stages, scaled to its size. Stages can overlap, for example Build of the first release runs while Design continues for the next, but each has a clear goal and an exit gate agreed with the customer.
| Stage | Goal | Led by | Exit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 Discover | Agree the problem, the baseline and the desired outcome. | Engagement Manager, Business Analyst | Customer sponsor agrees the problem statement, success measures and next step. |
| 02 Design | Define what will be built, how, and how it will be accepted. | Solution Architect, Business Analyst, UX/UI Designer | Architecture, scope for the first release and acceptance criteria approved by customer and Tech Lead. |
| 03 Build | Deliver working software in small, reviewed increments. | Tech Lead, Software Engineers, Delivery Lead | Each story meets the definition of done; the increment is demonstrated to the customer. |
| 04 Verify | Prove the software works, is secure and can be released. | QA Lead, Security Lead, Tech Lead | Release gates passed; customer sponsor approves the release. |
| 05 Operate | Run, measure and keep improving the software. | DevOps, Support & Operations, Engagement Manager | Ongoing: priorities and improvements reviewed monthly with the customer. |
Who is involved in each stage
| Discover | Design | Build | Verify | Operate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customer Sponsor | ••• | •• | • | •• | •• |
| Engagement Manager | ••• | • | • | • | ••• |
| Delivery Lead | • | •• | ••• | •• | •• |
| Business Analyst | ••• | ••• | •• | •• | • |
| UX/UI Designer | • | ••• | •• | • | |
| Tech Lead / Architect | •• | ••• | ••• | •• | •• |
| Software Engineers | • | ••• | •• | •• | |
| QA / Test Automation | •• | •• | ••• | •• | |
| DevOps / Platform | • | •• | •• | ••• | |
| Security & Compliance | • | •• | •• | ••• | •• |
| AI / Data Engineer | • | •• | ••• | •• | •• |
| Support & Operations | • | ••• |
Related
Lifecycle
Stage 1: Discover
Agree the problem, the baseline and the desired outcome before committing to a solution.
Lifecycle
Stage 2: Design
Define what will be built, how it will be built and how it will be accepted.
Lifecycle
Stage 3: Build
Deliver working software in small, reviewed steps, using AI to help and with people responsible for the result.
Lifecycle
Stage 4: Verify
Prove that the software works, is secure and can be released.
Lifecycle
Stage 5: Operate
Run, measure and keep improving the software after release.