Good design is about making conscious and well-informed decisions throughout the design process. A great product or service is typically built on a foundation of understanding the real needs of the user and other stakeholders.

Although improving understanding should be an ongoing process, it is initiated at the beginning of the project to discover ‘why’ are we doing this, and ‘what’ needs should be addressed.

The focal point of discovery is consideration of the interaction between the user and the potential product or service in its intended use environment. The wider context considers the goals and aspirations of users, together with the tasks they will undertake to achieve these, and the interaction between the business and its product.

The success of a product can be measured in terms of it being functional, usable, desirable and viable, as previously considered in the What is inclusive design? section. The objective of the discover phase is to build the knowledge foundation to achieve these goals.