Discover the real stages of a software project, from planning to deployment, and what to expect at each one
As a Project Manager, your main goal is to satisfy your customers, by understanding their needs and providing the best suited solution to solve their pain points, while keeping the project on track and the team focused.
I like to compare it with a boat captain, who needs to manage a whole team of sailors to keep the boat roaming to the final destination, which can only be achieved if every single people are aware of the objective, of their responsibilities, what are the current priorities and are warned if a risk or issue arises.
Said that way, this doesn’t sound so simple…
Every software project kicks off with excitement: fresh ideas, ambitious goals, and a team ready to build something great. However, only 0.5% of IT projects are truly ‘successful’ – that means completed within budget, on time, and with the intended benefits.
Timelines stretch. Priorities shift. Deliverables get blurry. Without structure, even the best projects quickly lose direction. That’s why understanding the phases of a software project matters. And that’s exactly what the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is for. It gives the project a clear rhythm: each phase with its own focus, outcomes, and handoffs.
Once you see a project through the lens of SDLC, everything becomes easier to track. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the actual phases of a software project, why it matters to follow a process, and how to pick the model that fits your reality.
What is the Software Development Life Cycle?
The Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is a structured process used by development teams to design, build, test, and deploy software efficiently and with minimal risk. It provides a clear framework that outlines each phase of the software creation process — from initial planning and requirements gathering to development, testing, deployment, and maintenance. By following a defined cycle, teams can ensure that the final product meets user needs, performs reliably, and stays within scope, time, and budget constraints.
Different SDLC models exist — including Waterfall, Agile, Spiral, and DevOps — each offering its own approach to handling these phases based on the nature and scale of the project. Regardless of the model chosen, the core goal remains the same: to bring structure and predictability to software development, promote collaboration among stakeholders, and reduce the chances of costly rework or project failure.
Why following a Software Development Life Cycle matters
Skipping structure is the fastest way to burn budget and patience. Here’s what a clear development cycle gets you:
1. Less chaos, more clarity
When everyone understands what’s coming next, and why, collaboration improves, and confusion fades. You’re no longer dealing with endless “where are we at?” meetings. Instead, the team can focus on building, with a clear objective and vision, and knows why their work is valuable.
2. Risks don’t sneak up on you
Things will eventually go wrong at some point. But a structured process forces you to spot the red flags early, when they’re still manageable, not when they’ve grown into full-blown problems.
3. Fewer rewrites, better results
Without proper planning and testing stages, most software ends up being patched over endlessly. Following a process helps teams build with intention, so less time is spent fixing avoidable mistakes or doing rework.
4. Smarter use of budget and brainpower
Knowing what’s needed and when helps avoid duplicated effort, missed details, and pointless features. That means your budget isn’t eaten alive by rework and you provide useful features, respecting priorities and needs.
5. It builds real trust
Clients, users, investors – they all care about predictability. A visible, repeatable process shows you know what you’re doing and gives everyone confidence that you’ll deliver what you promised. You can guide them through the process, warn about common pitfalls and identify risks on a timely manner, follow good practices and stay on top of the timeline.
7 phases of a software project
Every software project has moving parts – people, processes, priorities – and without a clear structure, it’s easy to lose track of what’s really happening and what’s next. Breaking it down into well-defined phases will help you deliver with purpose.
1. Discovery and planning
This is where you decide whether the project is viable, valuable and technically sound. You’ll need to align goals, understand user needs, and map out the scope.
At this stage, you’re typically:
Identifying user problems and business needs, and how your solution can help.
Defining goals, risks, and key success metrics.
Gathering initial requirements and defining an initial high-level timeline.
Outlining constraints and dependencies.
Identifying main stakeholders, like SPOCs, Sponsors and SMEs, align your ways of working and communicating.
2. Requirements and analysis
Once you have a high-level vision, this is where you dive deeper. You’ll translate business needs into detailed technical and functional requirements, with clear priorities and acceptance criteria.
At this stage, you’re typically:
Writing user stories or use cases.
Prioritising features and defining scope boundaries.
Collaborating across business and tech to align expectations.
3. Design
Now it’s time to define how things will work, like architecture or user experience. Good design keeps both users and developers in mind, reducing friction later.
At this stage, you’re typically:
Creating wireframes or interactive prototypes.
Planning system architecture and data flow.
Making UX and UI decisions aligned with user goals.
4. Development
This is the build phase, where code starts to take shape. A good development cycle stays agile, with regular feedback loops, code reviews, and integration across teams.
At this stage, you’re typically:
Writing and reviewing code in sprints or iterations.
Testing incrementally with working demos and receiving users’ feedback.
Keeping communication open between product, design and development.
💡 Pro tip: Automate testing and deployment as early as possible — it saves time and reduces friction later.
5. Testing and QA
Before anything goes live, it needs to be tested. Proper QA ensures that the product works as intended, feels reliable, and can handle real-world use cases.
At this stage, you’re typically:
Running functional, integration, performance and security tests.
Logging, triaging and fixing bugs.
Involving users for beta testing or usability checks.
6. Deployment
This is when the product goes live — but the work doesn’t stop. A well-prepared deployment includes infrastructure, monitoring, rollback strategies and clear communication plans.
At this stage, you’re typically:
Preparing production environments.
Running final tests.
Communicating rollout to users and stakeholders,
Providing any training and/or giving support during solution adoption.
7. Maintenance and iteration
Once in the real world, software needs care. Maintenance includes fixing bugs, updating systems and making continuous improvements based on user feedback and analytics.
At this stage, you’re typically:
Monitoring usage and performance.
Fixing issues and shipping improvements.
Planning future iterations or scaling efforts.
Common SDLC Models and how to choose
There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to managing projects. The way you structure your project influences everything from speed to risk to flexibility. Knowing your options helps you pick a model that fits your team, your goals and your context, or even combine models to have an hybrid solution.
1. Waterfall
The classic, linear model. Each phase flows into the next, with little room for going back.
Best if you:
Have fixed requirements and budget.
Work in a highly regulated industry.
Need clear documentation and sign-off at every stage.
Prioritise user feedback and early value delivery.
Considerations:
Requires strong collaboration and discipline.
Needs stakeholder buy-in to work well.
3. Scrum
A popular Agile framework with time-boxed sprints, stand-ups and defined roles (like Product Owner and Scrum Master).
Best if you:
Have a team familiar with Agile.
Want structured iterations and accountability.
Need transparency and velocity tracking.
Considerations:
Can feel rigid if over-applied.
Requires team maturity and commitment.
4. Kanban
A visual flow-based system focused on limiting work in progress and delivering continuously.
Best if you:
Need a flexible, low-overhead system.
Want to visualise bottlenecks and improve flow.
Handle ongoing, unplanned or support work.
Considerations:
Less structured for long-term planning.
Works best with a disciplined team.
5. Hybrid Models (Agile + Waterfall, etc.)
Many teams blend elements of multiple models, especially in complex or cross-functional environments.
Best if you:
Need the predictability of Waterfall but the flexibility of Agile.
Work across departments with different rhythms.
Want structure without losing adaptability.
Considerations:
Must be tailored and agreed upon clearly.
Communication becomes even more critical.
Bringing it all together with Near Partner
Following a clear development structure is what keeps projects grounded, focused, and genuinely moving forward. But the reality is: every business, every product, every team works differently. That’s where we can help.
At Near Partner, we work with you through the phases of a software project to find the right rhythm for your reality. You’ll get a clear direction, a collaborative mindset, and the flexibility to adapt as things evolve.
If you want to build software in a way that feels grounded, transparent and truly aligned with your goals, let’s talk.
