7-Day Prototype

Step 1: Discover — Align on purpose, people, and priorities.

In Discover, we gather just enough context to point the course in the right direction: goals, audience, constraints, and what success looks like for your learners and leaders.

Review the terms on this page, or use the steps below to explore the rest of the prototype process.

Key terms in this step Goals & audience Stakeholders & SME Constraints Success measures

Goals & audience

Start here

What you want people to be able to do after the course, and who those people are.

Why it matters

Clear goals stop us from “just making slides.” Knowing the audience means the examples, tone, and level of detail actually match real people—not an idealized learner.

What we’ll ask you
  • The top 1–2 behavior changes you’d love to see after launch.
  • Who will take the course and what they already know (or don’t know).
  • Any must-have outcomes from leadership or compliance.

Stakeholders & SMEs

Who’s in the room

The people who approve the course and the people who know the details of the content.

Why it matters

When approvers and subject experts are clear, feedback is faster and less stressful. It also keeps us from getting conflicting directions halfway through the build.

What we’ll ask you
  • Who has final say on the course content and look-and-feel.
  • Who we should go to with detailed questions about the topic.
  • Anyone else who needs to see the prototype before we move to build.

Constraints

Real-world limits

The practical limits we need to respect: time, tools, budget, policies, and anything that might shape what the course can or cannot do.

Why it matters

Constraints are not bad news—they help us design something realistic. Agreeing on them early avoids rework later when we discover “we can’t actually do that” in your systems.

What we’ll ask you
  • Target launch window and any fixed dates we must hit.
  • Systems, tools, or templates we need to use (or avoid).
  • Any policies, legal requirements, or “red lines” we should know up front.

Success metrics

How we’ll know

The signs that tell you the course is working—things you can see, hear, or measure after people complete it.

Why it matters

Defining success upfront keeps us from relying on “it feels fine.” It ties the course back to the business problem and gives you something concrete to report on later.

What we’ll ask you
  • Any current numbers or signals you track (errors, tickets, time, sales, etc.).
  • What “good” would look like 3–6 months after launch.
  • Red-flag behaviors you’d like to see less of once people complete the course.