A practical scope, sprint, and CI/CD blueprint any small team can copy. A practical scope, sprint, and CI/CD blueprint any small team can copy. Why another MVP guide? Most MVPs fail from scope creep, fragile infrastructure, or slow feedback loops—not from lack of ideas. This guide focuses on a minimal but reliable path to get real users touching a real product quickly, with just enough quality gates to avoid rewrites. Week 0: Define “done” and remove uncertainty Problem statement in one sentence
Three primary use cases
One success metric (e.g., first task completion or first payment)
Non‑negotiables: auth, audit logs, basic observability, backups
Nice‑to‑haves explicitly parked Problem statement in one sentence Three primary use cases One success metric (e.g., first task completion or first payment) Non‑negotiables: auth, audit logs, basic observability, backups Nice‑to‑haves explicitly parked Artifacts: a one‑page PRD and a simple system sketch (client → API → DB → third‑party). Artifacts: Weeks 1–2: Ship a running skeleton Repos: monorepo or two (web/mobile + API)
Choose boring, proven stack (e.g., Next.js/React + Node/Laravel + Postgres)
Implement: auth, roles, seed data, feature flags, error tracking, health checks
Deploy to staging by day 3 Repos: monorepo or two (web/mobile + API) Choose boring, proven stack (e.g., Next.js/React + Node/Laravel + Postgres) Implement: auth, roles, seed data, feature flags, error tracking, health checks Deploy to staging by day 3 staging by day 3 Quality gates: lint, unit tests for core domains, pre‑commit hooks, CI under 10 minutes. Quality gates: # .github/workflows/ci.yml (example)
name: CI
on: [push, pull_request]
jobs:
  build_test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with: { node-version: '20' }
      - run: npm ci
      - run: npm run lint && npm test -- --ci # .github/workflows/ci.yml (example)
name: CI
on: [push, pull_request]
jobs:
  build_test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with: { node-version: '20' }
      - run: npm ci
      - run: npm run lint && npm test -- --ci Weeks 3–4: Deliver thin vertical slices Ship features as user‑visible slices, not layers. slices Slice template Slice template Small spec (Given/When/Then)
API contract + happy‑path test
UI with states: empty, loading, error, success
Telemetry: event feature_used
Docs: 5 lines in CHANGELOG + a short GIF for QA Small spec (Given/When/Then) API contract + happy‑path test UI with states: empty, loading, error, success Telemetry: event feature_used feature_used Docs: 5 lines in CHANGELOG + a short GIF for QA Weeks 5–6: Stabilize and prove value Add acceptance tests for the top flows
Load test the slowest endpoint (target p95 < 500 ms)
Backup + restore rehearsal
Observability dashboard: errors, latency, signups, first‑success rate
Release notes → pilot users Add acceptance tests for the top flows Load test the slowest endpoint (target p95 < 500 ms) Backup + restore rehearsal Observability dashboard: errors, latency, signups, first‑success rate Release notes → pilot users The MVP baseline checklist Authentication with rate limiting and secure password storage
Authorization (least privilege)
Input validation and request size limits
Centralized logging + error alerts
Daily backups + restore tested
Feature flags for risky changes
Basic privacy page + terms; collect minimal PII Authentication with rate limiting and secure password storage Authorization (least privilege) Input validation and request size limits Centralized logging + error alerts Daily backups + restore tested Feature flags for risky changes Basic privacy page + terms; collect minimal PII Estimation that doesn’t lie Estimate only the next two weeks. Use t‑shirt sizing for backlog and convert S/M/L to hours after splitting stories. Track only completed story points to set the next sprint’s capacity. t‑shirt sizing completed A note on architecture Prefer simple: a single Postgres, a single API service, a single web app. Add queues or microservices only for real bottlenecks. Complexity taxes you every day. Example backlog (first 6 weeks) Sign‑up/sign‑in, email verify, password reset
Org + roles (owner, user)
Core object CRUD + search
Import CSV (happy path)
Event tracking + simple dashboard
Stripe test payments (if relevant)
Admin toggles via feature flags
Docs: getting started + FAQ Sign‑up/sign‑in, email verify, password reset Org + roles (owner, user) Core object CRUD + search Import CSV (happy path) Event tracking + simple dashboard Stripe test payments (if relevant) Admin toggles via feature flags Docs: getting started + FAQ What to measure (and why) Activation: % of signups completing first core task
Latency p95: user‑perceived speed
Error rate: alerts per 1k requests
Retention (week‑over‑week): are users coming back? Activation: % of signups completing first core task Activation: Latency p95: user‑perceived speed Latency p95: Error rate: alerts per 1k requests Error rate: Retention (week‑over‑week): are users coming back? Retention (week‑over‑week): Releasing without fear Every PR passes CI
Staging auto‑deploys on merge; production behind a manual approval and feature flag
Rollback plan = previous container tag + DB migration down steps
Post‑release audit: top errors, time‑to‑fix, next mitigation Every PR passes CI Staging auto‑deploys on merge; production behind a manual approval and feature flag Rollback plan = previous container tag + DB migration down steps Post‑release audit: top errors, time‑to‑fix, next mitigation Common traps (and exits) Endless polishing: fix a time box; ship to 5 real users
Framework shopping: pick one you already know
Premature scaling: more instances don’t cure poor queries—profile first
Analytics soup: track 3 events tied to your success metric; nothing more Endless polishing: fix a time box; ship to 5 real users Endless polishing: Framework shopping: pick one you already know Framework shopping: Premature scaling: more instances don’t cure poor queries—profile first Premature scaling: Analytics soup: track 3 events tied to your success metric; nothing more Analytics soup: Resources to copy OWASP ASVS (baseline security)
Twelve‑Factor App (ops sanity)
GitHub Actions marketplace test/lint actions OWASP ASVS (baseline security) Twelve‑Factor App (ops sanity) GitHub Actions marketplace test/lint actions

This story contains new, firsthand information uncovered by the writer.

dashboard

Stripe

The MVP Engineering Playbook: Ship a Useful 0→1 in 6 Weeks

About Author

Comments

TOPICS

THIS ARTICLE WAS FEATURED IN

Related Stories

How AI Phishing Is Putting School Districts at Risk

Why kube-prometheus-stack Isn’t Enough for Kubernetes Observability

Saas Brands Are Scared to Stand Out

104 Stories To Learn About Continuous Integration

139 Stories To Learn About Cicd

15 of the Best Continuous Delivery Tools

How AI Phishing Is Putting School Districts at Risk

Why kube-prometheus-stack Isn’t Enough for Kubernetes Observability

Saas Brands Are Scared to Stand Out

104 Stories To Learn About Continuous Integration

139 Stories To Learn About Cicd

15 of the Best Continuous Delivery Tools

Light-Mode

Classic

Newspaper

Minty

Dark-Mode

Neon Noir

Minty

HN StartUps