1. Understand today's work
Walk through a representative task with the people who do it. List the records, handoffs, exceptions and existing tools. Keep private examples in an agreed protected environment.
From a task to a first release
Make the important decisions while they are still easy to change.
Build enough to learn from real use, with clear checks before people rely on the application.
2. Define the first useful release
Choose a complete task and the roles allowed to perform it. Separate essential behavior from later improvements. Write down what the first release will deliberately leave out.
3. Review the application as it takes shape
Use a protected working version to review screens, wording and business rules. Ask staff to try the important tasks with synthetic records before making larger design commitments.
4. Test the records and exceptions
Check permissions, invalid entries, interrupted work and integrations as well as the ordinary path. If data will move from an older system, rehearse that move and compare the results.
5. Roll out and hand over
Agree on who starts using it first, how issues are reported and how to recover from a failed release. Keep the tested release, operating instructions and support responsibilities together.
Each phase should leave something useful.
That may be a clear brief, a working prototype or a released task. Compare the decisions behind each stage.