You have decided to build a custom application with the INNOVATECH GROUP team — whether that is a web app, a mobile app, or a business system. Now you want to understand what happens next: how the build process actually works, how progress is tracked, and what your role as the client looks like throughout the project.
This article explains the agile software development approach that the INNOVATECH GROUP team typically follows. It is written for business owners, not developers — no technical background is required.
Prerequisites
No technical knowledge is needed. This guide assumes you are entering or about to enter a software development engagement and want to understand the process.
What Is Agile Software Development?
Agile is an approach to building software where work is broken into short cycles rather than done in one long stretch. Each cycle produces a working piece of software that you can see, use, and give feedback on. The development team then adjusts based on your feedback before starting the next cycle.
This is different from the traditional approach (sometimes called "waterfall"), where the entire project is designed upfront, built over a long period, and delivered to the client at the end. In the waterfall approach, the first time you see working software is often months into the project — and if something is not quite right, changing it at that stage is expensive.
In agile, you see working software regularly and have the opportunity to steer the project throughout the build — not just at the end.
Why INNOVATECH GROUP Uses Agile
Custom software projects involve uncertainty. Requirements evolve as you see the product take shape. Market conditions change. New ideas emerge. Agile accommodates this reality by building in regular checkpoints where priorities can be reassessed and the plan can be adjusted.
This does not mean there is no plan — it means the plan is refined continuously rather than fixed in concrete at the start.
Key Concepts Explained
The Product Backlog
The product backlog is a prioritised list of everything that needs to be built. It includes features, improvements, bug fixes, and technical work. Think of it as a living to-do list for the entire project.
You and the INNOVATECH team build and maintain this list together. At the start of the project, the backlog captures the features discussed during the scoping phase. As the project progresses, new items are added, existing items are refined, and priorities are adjusted based on what you learn along the way.
The backlog is ordered by priority — the most important items are at the top, and those are what the team works on next.
The Sprint
A sprint is a fixed time period — typically one to two weeks at INNOVATECH GROUP — during which the team selects a set of items from the top of the backlog and builds them. Each sprint has a clear goal: a defined set of features or improvements that the team commits to completing within the sprint.
At the end of the sprint, the work is demonstrated to you and the cycle begins again.
Sprint Planning
Sprint planning is a meeting at the start of each sprint where you and the development team agree on what will be built during the upcoming sprint.
During this meeting:
- The team reviews the items at the top of the product backlog
- You confirm priorities — if business needs have changed since the last sprint, this is the time to adjust
- The team estimates how much work they can take on in the sprint based on the team's capacity
- The group agrees on a sprint goal — a concise statement of what the sprint aims to achieve
Sprint planning typically takes 30 to 60 minutes. It ensures that the team is building the right things in the right order.
Sprint Review (Demo)
The sprint review happens at the end of each sprint. This is where the development team demonstrates the working software they built during the sprint.
This is not a slide presentation — it is a live demonstration of real, working software deployed to a staging environment (a test version of the application that mirrors the production environment). You can interact with the features, ask questions, and provide feedback.
Your feedback during the sprint review directly shapes what happens next. If something needs adjustment, it goes back into the backlog and is prioritised for an upcoming sprint. If a new idea emerges, it can be added to the backlog and discussed during the next sprint planning session.
Retrospective
The retrospective is an internal meeting where the development team reflects on how the sprint went — what worked well, what could be improved, and what changes to make in the next sprint.
You are not typically present for the retrospective, but you benefit from it. It is the team's mechanism for continuously improving their own process, which translates into a better experience and better output for you over time.
Definition of Done
The definition of done is the agreed set of criteria a feature must meet before the team considers it complete. This typically includes:
- The feature works as described in the backlog item
- The feature has been tested (both automated tests and manual testing)
- The feature has been reviewed by a second developer on the team
- The feature is deployed to the staging environment and ready for your review
The definition of done is agreed at the start of the project and applies to every backlog item. It ensures consistency — every piece of work meets the same quality standard before it is shown to you.
Your Role as the Client
Agile works best when the client is an active participant, not a passive recipient. Here is what your involvement typically looks like:
Attend Sprint Planning and Review Sessions
These two meetings are the most important touchpoints. Sprint planning (at the start of the sprint) ensures the team is building what you need. The sprint review (at the end) lets you see what was built and provide feedback.
Each session typically lasts 30 to 60 minutes. For a two-week sprint, that is roughly one to two hours of your time per sprint.
Be Available for Clarification
During the sprint, the development team may need quick answers to clarification questions — for example, "Should the client list be sorted by company name or registration date?" or "Should this notification go to the account owner or all users on the account?"
Timely answers (within a few hours on business days) keep the sprint moving without delays. This does not require large time commitments — most questions can be answered via email, a messaging platform, or a brief call.
Prioritise the Backlog
You decide what matters most. The development team advises on technical feasibility, effort, and dependencies, but the business priority is yours to set. If market conditions change and a feature that was low priority becomes urgent, you can move it to the top of the backlog at the next sprint planning session.
Provide Feedback Promptly
When the team demonstrates a feature in the sprint review, your feedback determines what happens next. Prompt, specific feedback ("The filter should also include a date range option" or "This looks good — move to the next feature") keeps the project moving efficiently.
What You See at Each Stage
One of the core benefits of agile is that you see real progress regularly — not just at the end of the project.
After each sprint, you receive:
- A working version of the application deployed to a staging environment
- A demonstration of the new features or changes built during the sprint
- An updated backlog reflecting any new items, reprioritised work, or completed features
This means that if the project involves 10 sprints, you see 10 incremental versions of the software — each one building on the last. If something needs to change, it is caught early and adjusted, rather than discovered at the end of a long build phase.
Common Questions
Can I change the requirements during the project?
Yes — this is one of the main advantages of agile. New requirements or changes to existing ones go into the product backlog. During sprint planning, you and the team decide where they sit in the priority order. Changes are accommodated transparently, with clear discussion about what moves up, what moves down, and what the impact is on the overall project.
How do I know what a sprint will cost?
Sprint scope and effort are confirmed during sprint planning. If a sprint is structured as a fixed-cost engagement, the cost is agreed based on the planned scope. If requirements change mid-sprint, the impact is discussed transparently so there are no surprises. Detailed cost structures and billing arrangements are documented in the formal scope of work agreed before the project starts.
What if I am not happy with what was built in a sprint?
This is exactly why sprint reviews exist. Your feedback is incorporated into the next sprint. If a feature does not meet expectations, the team refines it. Agile specifically avoids the situation where months of work are delivered and the client discovers it is not what they needed.
How long does the whole project take?
Project duration depends on the scope and complexity of the backlog. Because agile delivers working software incrementally, you start seeing value early — but the total number of sprints required depends on the full scope of work. Your INNOVATECH project lead provides an estimated timeline during the scoping phase, with the understanding that the timeline may adjust as the backlog evolves.
Does INNOVATECH GROUP use a project management tool I can access?
The INNOVATECH team uses internal project management tools to track sprints, backlog items, and progress. Access and visibility into these tools are discussed during project onboarding and depend on the engagement structure. The client portal does not include a built-in sprint board or project tracker — project communication happens through the agreed channels (sprint meetings, email, messaging platform).
Next Steps
If you are considering a custom application project with INNOVATECH GROUP and want to discuss how the agile process applies to your specific requirements, reach out through the contact form. The team can walk you through how a typical engagement is structured and answer any questions about the build process.