This article helps you understand the development process using the ORIGAM platform, from both a procedural and business perspective.
New here? To get a solid understanding of the platform’s fundamentals, please check out the chapters Introduction and Platform Overview.
The development process
ORIGAM is not just a development platform—it’s a comprehensive approach to delivering information systems and applications, tailored to specific projects and business processes. This chapter outlines the overall process, which differs from traditional software delivery and customer interactions. The key distinction and major advantage of using ORIGAM is that we provide a working prototype of the future product to the customer as early as possible, often included in the bidding stage of the business process. In essence, the system or application exists in some rough form before the deal is even made.
If you’re not interested in the business aspects and just want to dive straight into ORIGAM development, feel free to skip this chapter and jump straight to the next. However, we encourage you to read this chapter—it provides valuable insights into the overall conceptual framework of the ORIGAM platform.
The typical process of delivering systems or applications with ORIGAM follows these steps:
- Let the customer talk and record everything they say and show
- Clarify any ambiguities, request useful documents and materials
- Think about the application structure, create a rough prototype, and show it to the customer
- Finalize all relevant details and close the deal
- Turn the prototype into a fully functional application and present it to the customer
- Gather feedback, iterate, and refine the prototype with the customer
- Deploy the application to production and set the stage for future development
This is a general model, and in practice, every project is unique. The process may vary depending on the case, with some steps skipped, repeated, or added as needed.
Let’s explore each step in more detail.
1. Let the customer talk and record everything they say and show
The goal here is to allow the customer to express all their thoughts freely without interruptions, while capturing everything for later processing.
Depending on the complexity of the project and the nature of the customer, this step may take one or more meetings of varying lengths. However, the principle remains the same: let the customer talk, avoid interruptions, and take detailed notes.
During this phase, you can also assess whether this is the right customer and contract for both you and ORIGAM.
The output from this step should be structured text, ideally including:
- A description of the problem or idea
- A list of requirements
- A list of relevant materials mentioned by the customer
2. Ask the customer about unclear or relevant points, and gather all useful materials
The aim here is to clarify any aspects that were unclear or missed during the initial discussion and to gather any supporting documentation.
Be proactive in asking about things the customer may have overlooked, as well as any relevant documents (e.g., Excel tables, current system screenshots) or materials that could help in creating the first design or prototype. Anything you collect here will be vital in shaping the application, so don’t hesitate to ask for anything you think might be useful.
The output should be structured text, including:
- Any additional requirements or specifications
- Supporting documents, tables, screenshots, schemas, and links from the customer
3. Think about the application structure, create a rough prototype, and show it to the customer
The aim here is to quickly give the customer a sense of what their ORIGAM-based application could look like and how it might work. This allows you to gather feedback and potentially confirm the order. Ideally, this is the final step in the business process, after which the contract is signed, and development begins.
To create the prototype, think about how to structure the application and how it will be implemented in ORIGAM. You may start by sketching an entity and relationship diagram (ERD) or, if necessary, create rough designs of the main screens. These can be fine-tuned with the customer before moving on to the actual functional prototype.
The final output here is a basic ORIGAM prototype.
4. Define all relevant details and close the deal
The goal at this stage is to finalize the details of the initial phase of the project, agree on terms, and solidify the deal.
At this point, the customer should have a good understanding of what they will receive from ORIGAM, making it a perfect time to confirm the order and finalize the details.
In this step, you’ll need to discuss and define:
- Application functionality
- User management, roles, and groups
- Language variants
- Specific UX/UI requests
- Data import/export requirements
- Print and document export needs
- Software ecosystem context
- Integration with other systems (APIs)
- Hosting and DevOps considerations
- Security measures, etc.
This step is also crucial for ensuring that the contract is suitable for both you and ORIGAM.
Not sure what to ask the customer? We have a list of questions and topics to consider here.
Additionally, at this stage, you’ll need to choose the project approach. ORIGAM supports both waterfall projects, but it is best suited for agile delivery and time & material projects. You can use this pricing table (LINK) to help estimate the workload.
Not sure how to estimate the workload? Refer to our ORIGAM project pricing guide.
The output from this step will be an agreement—whether formal or informal—covering all relevant materials, including customer documents and your prototype. Once this is in place, full-fledged development can begin.
5. Turn your prototype into a finished application and show It to the customer
Now it’s time to finalize the application according to the previously defined specifications. If the requirements were clear and there are no logical contradictions, the process here is similar to traditional development, but with ORIGAM’s faster development capabilities.
If any issues arise, such as contradictions or unclear points, it’s important to discuss them with the customer, as this is standard procedure.
6. Collect feedback, update the prototype, and show It to the customer again and again
Even though you may believe you’ve completed the project exactly as specified, there will inevitably be areas that require changes. This may be due to misunderstandings or because the customer has new ideas once they see their requirements in action.
Fortunately, with ORIGAM, you can make changes and adjustments quickly, so this step will involve continually refining the prototype until the customer is completely satisfied.
7. Run the application in production and set up the routine for future development
Once the application is ready and all key issues are addressed, it’s time to launch it in production. Of course, there will still be a number of things to handle, but this is part of the development process.
After launching, you’ll need to agree on the ongoing development process, including bug fixes, functionality changes, and the creation of new features. This is very similar to traditional development practices.
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Now that you have a better understanding of how the ORIGAM platform is used to deliver projects, you’re ready to start building your own application. Continue on to the next chapter: Getting Ready.