Behind the Scenes: Product Research and Validation for Accelo v4

By now, you’ve hopefully heard that we’re releasing a new version of Accelo this December. 

Along with the lowdown on why we decided to upgrade the platform this year, we’ve revealed the advancement in technology underpinning this upgrade, along with a deeper dive into the new design we’re bringing to life in Accelo v4 with three "Behind the Scenes" events. 

Here, I’m sharing the third and final webinar in this recorded series — this one about how we make sure we're building a great product for our users through our research and validation process. Read the quick recap of what I discussed with Pat Doyle and Drew Galiger from our Product team, and watch the full video below for the details!

Turning Ideas into Initiatives

We use a multi-step process to intake, scope and rank ideas from our users and our team. In this process, we draw heavily from our Ideas Forum. While we weigh the popularity of ideas, we also consider impact, cost and dependencies. Then, we prioritize work on a quarterly basis.

During the major v4 upgrade (which touches or builds on dozens and dozens of individual ideas), we’ve also used the Ideas Forum suggestions (some going back many years) for insights and clarity — as a basis for further discovery and refinement.

The Research Phase

After we’ve prioritized initiatives, we commence an extensive product research phase. During this phase, we write up detailed requirements and set about refining, proving or disproving them through data, market insights, internal interviews and client interviews. 

The result is a package of defined work to hand over to the Product Delivery team, along with our Design and Engineering teams.

A Handover to Design

Our product delivery process starts with a handover to our Design team, who further press and challenge the requirements as they take words and data and turn them into screens and prototypes. We validate these prototypes with our users, and they often require revisions. 

Next, we move into the development or build phase, and when we’re ready, our Product Research team supports our launch and communications efforts, bringing the process full circle.

➡️ Take a peek at what v4 will look like! Here are some of the upgraded screens we’ve shared.

Measuring the Impact

Finally, our Product Research team measures the success (or failure) of our efforts. Each initiative has different metrics for success, which we use to assess our performance and potentially start the process all over again with a fresh intake or initiative.

Interested in learning more about how we use your ideas and how you can impact Accelo’s development? Watch the replay below to listen to the full conversation and discover the benefits of partnering with your client work management platform team.