Insights

Taking a proof of concept (PoC) and turning it into a fully functional production system is an integral part of the software development process. It represents the transition from theoretical potential to a real-world application and as a result, must be handled correctly. This phase has its own challenges and opportunities, and each process will be unique. A PoC demonstrates the feasibility of an idea, taking it to production involves scaling, optimising, and hardening the solution to meet client demands. In this article, we’ll explore the essential steps and considerations for effectively migrating a PoC to a robust production system, drawing on best practices and some real-world examples. Whether you’re a developer, project manager, or IT leader, understanding this transition is key to delivering software that not only works but thrives in production.

Before we get into that let’s define what a proof of concept is.

What is a proof of concept?

A PoC is a method for determining, or demonstrating the validity of an idea, product, solution, or hypothesis. It is not the actual product; it is to determine whether the intended product will work. It is important to note that a PoC is a process, not a product. It’s a process of gathering evidence to demonstrate feasibility. A PoC is a way to demonstrate that the product you will create will work.

This process of gathering evidence is how potential challenges and risks are identified that you will have to deal with when/if you create the product. With that in mind, the PoC is a small-scale starting point for the final product.

What we’re trying to do is answer the question “Will this concept work out in the wild?”

Why is a proof of concept important?

A properly executed PoC can help determine five key factors:

1. Minimal Risk
   A PoC will help calculate risk early without the need to invest lots of money or effort
2. Feasibility
   A PoC will test whether a project is feasible or not
3. Identification
   A PoC will help identify potential risks or challenges early
4. Planning
   A PoC will help avoid investing in unnecessary, or unwanted projects/products. They test the idea early to ensure it’s worth pursuing.
5. Trust
   A PoC will help you earn trust by showing that this idea can provide return on investment.

What are the steps involved in creating a PoC?

The first step in creating a PoC involves asking 3 questions:

1. What is the problem?
2. What are the requirements?
3. What is the timeframe?

Once these questions are answered we can start writing code, right? Wrong! There are still several steps that need to be taken before any code is written.

Mandatory steps

Define the problem
Clearly outline the problem that the software aims to solve. Understand the requirements and constraints to ensure the PoC addresses them.

Set Objectives
Establish clear objectives and determine what success looks like. This is important! We must know what a successful PoC looks like otherwise how will we know if it’s feasible?

Choose your weapon
Select the appropriate technologies for the PoC. Base this on 4 criteria:

1. Ease of development
2. Speed of development
3. Scalability
4. Alignment with long term product goals

You shouldn’t write your PoC in a programming language or a framework you aren’t familiar with, unless that IS your PoC. Choose a framework and technology that will fit with the current production environment.

Develop
Only now can we start the fun part! Start with a minimal version of the software that focuses on the core functionalities. Build it quickly to test the concept efficiently and keep the code clean. Always maintain good development practices for an easier transition to production for you, or maybe someone else. If the PoC is successful, this will be the start of what goes into production.

Test and iterate
Yes… you still must test your PoC otherwise how will you know if it works?

Assess viability
Evaluate the PoC against your predefined success criteria to determine whether it effectively addresses the problem and if it is useful or marketable.

Things to avoid

Over engineering
Avoid adding unnecessary features or details. The PoC should be lean and focused solely on proving the concept.

Perfectionism
A PoC is no place for perfectionism so make it fragile. A PoC is not production ready code. Quite often developers are told “Just push it (the PoC) to production” but don’t do that, it’s not made for that. Make your PoC work but keep room for improvement. Make it fragile, make it buggy, but make it work only with select data or for specific interactions.

Broad scope
Avoid trying to solve all potential issues or demonstrate all features. Keep the scope narrow.

Lack of focus
Don’t deviate from the main objective. Ensure that all efforts are directed towards testing the core concept.

Neglect of documentation
Yep… documentation is still required. Poor documentation, even in a PoC can lead to misunderstandings and make it difficult to transition from PoC to production. PoC documentation should be simple and used to record things like the setup instructions, technical decisions, and initial test cases.

Ignoring feedback
Don’t overlook feedback. Early engagement can provide valuable insights to prevent future issues. Even if you don’t use the feedback in the PoC, it may be useful for “productionisation.”

Overlooking security
Don’t ignore security practices because this can lead to incorrect feasibility assumptions.

Scalability
Avoid focusing on scalability at this stage. The PoC is about proving that the concept works, not how it will handle large scale deployment or workloads.

How to determine a successful PoC?

Once the PoC has been created, how do we determine whether it’s “successful”? That’s why we defined the success criteria at the start.

A “successful” PoC isn’t just one that proves the idea works; it’s also one that shows when it doesn’t. If a PoC passes, it means the concept is viable and can be taken to the next level. But if it fails, that’s valuable too. A failed PoC reveals that the idea isn’t feasible, saving investments in time, effort, and money. Both outcomes are wins: a pass means we can move forward with confidence, and a failure means we can pivot or abandon the idea before it further drains resources.

The difference between a PoC and a prototype

At this point you might be thinking that a PoC and a prototype sound very similar. There is quite a distinct difference between the two. We’ve established that a PoC is a way to validate the feasibility of an idea with its sole purpose being to test that this idea can work. It’s important to note that a PoC is not just a simplified version of the final product, but a stand-alone project.

A PoC is designed for a very small audience, usually internal stakeholders (project managers, product owners etc). The development is relatively quick and resource-light that involves minimal coding, basic mock-ups, or theoretical models.

If the results of a PoC are negative it will save a lot of time and development costs. If the results are positive, then we have a great starting point for the final product. This is where the prototype phase starts. A prototype is designed to model how the final product will function or appear with a focus on UI/UX elements (if applicable). Prototypes can range from sketches or wireframes to interactive digital models. They are designed for all the same people for whom a PoC is designed with the addition of potential users, customers, clients, or stakeholders and are used to gather feedback on useability and design.

Prototyping involves creating more detailed and interactive models of the product. It may still not be fully functional, but it will more closely represent the final product. Prototypes are also often more iterative based on feedback and testing.

The key differences between a PoC and a prototype are:

The “Productionisation” process

Our PoC has been created, we’ve validated that the concept works, and we’ve been given the green light to make it a thing. If we’ve validated that it won’t work, then stop here… but if it does work, what next?

Plan Productionisation
Start planning for productionisation. Consider factors like scalability, security, maintainability, and integration with existing systems.

Refine Architecture
Review the architecture of the PoC and make necessary adjustments to ensure it meets production standards. This will involve restructuring code, optimising performance, and addressing potential security vulnerabilities. This is necessary because the gap between PoC and production could be months or years and a lot changes in that time.

Test Everything
Develop comprehensive testing strategies, such as unit testing, integration tests, and end-to-end (e2e) tests. Automated testing helps ensure stability and reliability as it moves through each environment to production.

Scale Infrastructure
Know what infrastructure you need to have ready to support the software. Know what costs (money and storage etc) are required to accommodate anticipated usage levels.

DevSecOps (Development, Security, and Operations)
Address security concerns by implementing best practices to protect the software against potential threats. This includes data encryption, access controls, input validation, and regular security audits. Define a deployment strategy for rolling out the software to production and to users. Consider things like downtime, rollback procedures, and monitoring to minimise disruption. Automate everything you can!

Document and training
Provide training and documentation to users and support staff to ensure that they understand how to use and maintain the software effectively. This reduces the likelihood of issues arising post deployment.

Monitor and optimise
Continuously monitor the software in production to identify performance bottlenecks, usage patterns etc, to find potential issues or areas of improvement.

Get feedback
Don’t be scared to ask for feedback! Use the feedback to determine the best path for future updates and enhancements. The product must align with user needs and/or business goals.

Have fun!

A PoC plays a pivotal role in the development lifecycle by validating ideas early, identifying potential risks, and gathering critical stakeholder feedback. It’s a good foundation step that can significantly influence the success of the final product. A successful PoC is not just about proving a concept but about laying a solid foundation for robust, scalable, and reliable products. Remember, the goal is not just to build software, but to build software that thrives in the real world.

Ready to take your Proof of Concept to the next level? Let us help you transform your idea into a robust production system that delivers real-world results. Contact us today to start your journey from concept to reality.