Our real secret sauce is in how we collaborate cross-functionally between Product, Design & Engineering from the beginning. Too often, companies try to solve Design and Engineering in two completely separate phases, but this invariably leads to rework if Engineering is only consulted on feasibility, complexity, and estimated timeline and development fees after Design, rather than throughout Design.
This is why Rootstrap often recommends a Technical Lead during the first few phases because it reduces the risk of 'over-designing' too soon and generally keeps the overall project on time and on budget.
Rather than finish the Design phase with only a high-fidelity prototype, our approach means we can also prepare a complete engineering backlog, roadmap, and estimated scope in order to roll right into development while providing our clients with transparent and modular pricing.
How Rootstrap Estimates Timeline & Fees: Transparent Pricing
Product Managers, Designers, and Engineers ‘storymap’ each new product or feature, scoring each user story for estimated level of effort using the Fibonacci sequence (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13).
→ Storymapping: A score of 1 may take one person half a day, while higher scores could involve multiple people collaborating over several days.
→ Estimation: We add up all the story points by ‘epic’ or major feature, and the overall total as well. Leveraging our experience with over 700 product launches, we translate these story points into: 1) a dynamic team allocation, adjusting in skills and size over time for cost efficiency, and 2) an estimated timeline in weeks with a high level of confidence level based on what we know.
→ Pricing: We calculate a transparent price estimate using per-person weekly rates for quarter-time (10 hrs), half-time (20 hrs), or full-time (40 hrs), adjusted for role and seniority.
→ Modular: Our transparent pricing model supports an incremental development approach, making it easy to scrutinize and modify. If we estimate a lot of story points for a particular epic or feature, but you don’t think it should be so complex, or you don’t want to prioritize it given the development time and fees, then we workshop with you to simplify or deprioritize altogether. This is how we tightly and collaboratively manage the overall roadmap and fees to meet your goals.