How we build · Stage 01
Explore
Understand the idea and whether we are the right team for it.
- Typical duration
- 1–2 weeks
- Portal phase
- Before a project exists
- Stage
- 01 of 08
- CRM stages
- 4
What this stage is for
A short, unpaid conversation to understand the problem, the constraints and the outcome you need. We use it to decide honestly whether NELLA Labs is a good fit, and to tell you if someone else would serve you better.
Your part
Share the problem, the timeline pressure and any hard constraints. Nothing needs to be polished.
Activities
What happens
- Project Architect session or a direct conversation
- Problem framing and outcome definition
- Constraint capture: regulatory, budget, timeline, internal capacity
- Fit assessment against our capability and current capacity
- Preliminary architecture direction and delivery-path options
Outputs
What you get
- Project Canvas — an editable one-page summary of problem, users, outcomes and scope
- Indicative investment band and delivery-path recommendation
- A written note on what we would need to learn before committing to numbers
Exit criteria
We do not move on until
Written down so neither side has to rely on a feeling that things seem fine.
- Both sides agree the problem is worth solving and we are a credible team for it
- An owner and a decision-maker are identified on the client side
- A discovery scope and commercial model are agreed in principle
Behind the scenes
How this shows up in our systems
This is not a diagram made for a website. The stage you are reading maps onto literal values in our CRM and the phase label in your client portal.
- CRM pipeline stages
- Captured leadAn enquiry has arrived and nobody has worked it yet.Brief in progressSomeone is part-way through a Project Architect session.SubmittedA brief has been submitted and is waiting for a human read.QualificationDeciding whether this is a fit, and what shape of engagement it wants.
- What you see in the portal
- No project exists yet at this stage — it is created when an engagement is agreed.
Where it applies
Services that run this stage
Next step
Talk to us about explore
The Project Architect asks the questions this stage depends on, and tells you which stage your project should actually start at.