"Clients often want to get moving as quickly as possible and do not have the desire to wait while all of the details are figured out. In this case, I usually request to facilitate a vision and goal-setting session with as many stakeholders as possible. During that time, I try to gather as wide a perspective as possible on what is working, what is broken, and what the high-level solution ideas are. From there, I lean on my experience and intuition to determine where I need to dig further and which areas I can leave at a cursory review.
I tend to forge relationships with the stakeholders by taking them to lunch or calling them to bounce ideas off them to see if they are a fit. I also sit and shadow front-line users in the areas that will be affected most by whatever strategy we follow. This helps me quickly gain trust with the users, their management, and the executives involved. That trust is imperative when I make my recommendation because it allows me to be transparent about the areas I did not have time to analyze fully while suggesting where to begin development.
Finally, I work with my stakeholders to immediately implement any easy-to-execute tactical changes uncovered during discovery. This ensures that the teams I work on add value as early as possible during an initiative."
