In this article, you’ll see how we plan, develop and deliver iQualify. It’s nothing new. But we share it because as well as giving you some insight into how our features are iterated upon, you might be able to use it in your own work.

So here’s the approach we use in a nutshell:

Solve the “problem” in a way that lets you learn more about it, quickly.

Our approach to product development borrows heavily from lean and agile approaches. We frequently see these practices in the start-up world; where a new business will test their market with new ideas, often pivoting to reach the right market fit. Even though we may not be a start up, we think these approaches can really help when you’re driven to innovate and try new things.

It’s not about doing the bare minimum or solving things cheaply so you can move onto the next thing. It’s about learning. Learning early and learning often. With, of course, the aim of delivering value to our partners early and often.

Our approach is hypothesis-based. So when it comes to thinking about fixtures and features, we’re forever having this conversation:

What problem would our partners like iQualify to solve for them?

Okay, we think this is how we could help them solve it.

But we want to test these hypotheses.

  • First, was the statement of the partners’ need or problem accurate?
  • Second, does that thing we did actually solve it?

If yes, great - Our partners got value quickly.

If no, still also great - We learned a lot, and we learned without losing a massive amount of time going in the wrong direction. Now we know more about what might be the right direction.

Why is this useful? Well we think it’s useful for us, and useful for our partners. It’s a sort of reciprocal cycle. If we develop something that delivers our partners value quickly, then they see the benefit sooner than they might otherwise. Our partners seeing value quickly is of course better for us, because they’ll feel positive about us. Then, as they’re using the solution, we learn more about the “problem” and their use. Which, in turn, helps us have a whole lot more evidence for our next iteration of the solution.

You see, the thing is, we’re never done. There is no end-state for any part of iQualify. Every single bit that our partners use is helping us learn more about our partners’ evolving needs. And the cycle continues.

There’s a reason we have that tagline for iQualify, it’s not just that we’re a learning experience platform. It really is that we’re powered by learning.