01 · Discovery Sprint

From idea to an actionable plan.

You have an idea and domain expertise — but no clear answer to: should this be built, what would it cost, who should build it. A Discovery Sprint is structured research that ends with a complete product brief, a realistic budget and timeline, and a shortlist of the right teams to deliver.

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Why you can trust me

Acting CEO of TreximAI · 8 years BA across AI products, logistics, fintech, B2B SaaS

23+
IT projects shipped
Engagement formats
Audit · Discovery · Project Support
Based in
Lviv, Ukraine · fully remote · travel when it helps

Cases on this site are illustrative patterns drawn from 8 years inside IT — not invented for the page. No published clients yet.

02 Who this is for

Three typical situations I work with.

A

A founder with an idea and domain expertise.

You have deep knowledge of a specific industry — logistics, fintech, healthcare admin, education. You see a problem others don't, because you live with it daily. The product idea has been turning in your head for a year or two. But — how do you get from "idea" to a plan you can actually build against? Discovery brings structure: where's the hypothesis, where's the fact, what's worth building, what isn't.

B

A business owner about to invest in their first digital product.

You have an offline business that needs digitalizing, or an idea for a product on top of your existing one. The question is — what to build in v1, what's a realistic scope, what it'll cost, who should build it. Discovery gives you those answers as a document you can take to vendors — or even to investors.

C

A team launching a new internal product or service.

A corporation, agency, or startup that wants to launch a new line — either a B2B service built on existing expertise, or an internal tool that automates a routine. Discovery gives you objective research on the idea and a concrete product brief the team can start building from.

03 What you receive

Five artifacts, ready for action.

Documents your team (or the vendor you hire) can start working from immediately — no "what else needs figuring out?" overhead.

  1. 01

    Product brief for v1.

    What exactly we're building in v1: key features, user flows, what's NOT in v1 (explicitly stated — often more important). The brief works the same with vendors, investors, and the team — everyone reads it the same way.

  2. 02

    Validated hypotheses and rejected risks.

    We test critical assumptions: does the market need this product in this shape, are customers ready to pay, can it realistically be built in sensible timelines. Confirmed — moves into the plan. Rejected — out, with reasoning.

  3. 03

    Realistic budget and timeline.

    Not "plus or minus a few tens of thousands." Concrete ranges with reasoning, where the key uncertainty points are, how they affect price. Show it to a CFO or board — no surprise questions.

  4. 04

    Shortlist of the right vendors.

    3-5 teams or contractors that genuinely fit your project — by tech stack, domain experience, and price range. With a brief summary of each one's strengths and weaknesses, plus specific questions to ask on the discovery call.

  5. 05

    Negotiation pack.

    Arguments, numbers, technical details — everything you'll need during talks with the chosen vendor. So you walk into the conversation with data, not feelings.

The end value isn't the documents themselves — it's knowing exactly what to do next:

  • Sign a vendor contract on honest terms — within a budget that holds.
  • Or get investor confirmation, because they see a concrete plan with grounded numbers.
  • Or honestly decide not to build for now — and save the hundreds of thousands a misaligned product would have cost.
  • Or modify the idea into a version that holds — based on sober research, not guesses.
04 How it works

Three phases, each with a concrete artifact.

  1. 01

    Context and hypotheses (week 1).

    Deep interviews — with you, with potential clients (4-6 conversations), with industry reps. I gather the real picture: what hurts, what's been tried, what the market actually lacks. End-of-phase artifact: a "Context & Hypotheses" doc with the key assumptions to test.

  2. 02

    Validation and solution design (weeks 2-5).

    I test the critical hypotheses: are clients ready to pay, is it technically feasible, is there market space. In parallel — I form the product brief: v1 features, user flows, technical assumptions. End-of-phase: complete product brief + validated hypotheses.

  3. 03

    Shortlist and negotiation pack (weeks 6-8).

    I pick 3-5 vendors that genuinely fit. Ask them for a short estimate based on the brief. Assemble a negotiation pack — arguments, numbers, red flags. End-of-phase: a ready-to-negotiate package.

05 Not included

What Discovery isn't.

  • Building a working prototype. I don't write production code. If phase 2 needs a functional prototype for testing — that's a separate format or bringing in a team.
  • Full marketing strategy. I do base-level positioning and market research as part of discovery, but a full GTM plan is a separate craft with its own specialists.
  • The legal side. Contracts, licensing, patents — I'm not a lawyer. I can recommend one, but the actual legal advice isn't included.
  • A guarantee the product will succeed. Discovery can't guarantee a product "takes off." What it does guarantee: you move with the best knowledge available at launch.
06 Common questions

How is this different from "writing a spec"?

A spec describes what needs to be done. Discovery gives you not only "what" but also "why" and "how confident." The output isn't a dry spec — it's a package you use to decide whether to commit capital at all.

I already have an MVP, is Discovery worth it?

If the MVP already works and has first users — probably not. Discovery is for the pre-code stage. If the MVP exists but the result isn't satisfying — we should talk about Audit, not Discovery.

How many customer interviews are typically needed?

4-6 deep conversations with potential or existing clients in your industry — that's the minimum needed to form objective hypotheses. If your industry is very narrow or clients are hard to reach — we discuss alternatives (secondary sources, expert conversations, analytics).

Next step

Discovery Call — 30 minutes.

Book Discovery Call →

GET IN TOUCH

Let's talk

I'll get back to you within 24 hours — to schedule a discovery call or discuss your inquiry.

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Or email directly: taras@ascendgriffin.org

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