For teams who know they need something built, but not what, or how, or with what

Discovery & Scoping Workshop

Get from idea to scoped brief in two weeks

You end with a brief your team or any vendor can quote against
You see wireframes and a working prototype before committing to a full build
You know which technology stack is worth the investment and which is not

Who this is for

You have data, you have stakeholders, and you cannot yet describe what needs to be built. This is the most common reason dataviz projects go over budget — starting a build before the problem is properly defined.

Typical scenarios:

A product team where stakeholders each want a different dashboard and nobody has agreed on the core user question
A data or ML platform team with a strong backend and no clear plan for how to surface it to users
A comms or marketing team briefing in a data story without defined audience, narrative, or format
A founder preparing to hire a contractor or agency and wanting a specification first so they are not at the vendor's mercy

If you are tempted to write "build a dashboard" in a ticket and hand it to your engineers, this service exists to stop you.

What happens, step by step

Stakeholder interviews

In week one, I interview three to six people: product owner, users, technical lead.
Thirty to forty-five minutes each, recorded with consent.

By the end of week one, you know what your stakeholders actually disagree about — and where the real questions lie.

Data review and audience definition

I look at the real data (sample, schema, or live access).
We define the primary audience, their top three tasks, and the decisions this work needs to support.

You have, in writing, a one-page audience and tasks brief your whole team agrees on.

Wireframes and concept sketches

Low-fidelity wireframes of two or three alternative approaches.
Each one handles the same task a different way, so you can see the trade-offs before picking.

You can show your team and your leadership three options, not one, and have a real design conversation.

Working prototype

A clickable Observable, Svelte, or plain HTML prototype of the preferred direction.
Wired to your actual data where possible.

You see your data, in your interface, before committing to a build.

Technology recommendation and written brief

A written recommendation on stack (React vs D3 vs BI tool vs custom).
Estimated scope for the full build and a brief any vendor can quote against.

You have a specification. You can take it anywhere.

Typical engagement

£3,000 – £5,000Delivered over two weeks

What's Included:

Brief any vendor can quote against
Low-fidelity wireframes of multiple approaches
Clickable prototype wired to your actual data
Technology recommendation (React, D3, Svelte, BI tools)
Estimated scope & timeline for the full build
100% credit against a follow-on build engagement