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.

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

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