NHBC Case Study
Defining customer need
- Estafet Team
The Story
NHBC engaged Estafet for a six-week Agile Analysis to refine requirements for its Web Transformation Project, covering four key portals. Through 40+ workshops, Estafet developed a detailed, prioritised product backlog, capturing user stories, validation, complexity, and business value. Focusing on vertical slices streamlined work and allowed for efficient, targeted use of the client’s experts. Our approach enabled NHBC to prioritise features and phase project delivery, creating a clear, actionable project roadmap. By the end, NHBC had a well-defined, phased backlog, positioning it to move confidently to tender with an accurate specification, reducing uncertainty and improving vendor alignment.
Challenges
- INCONSISTENT DOCUMENTATION ACROSS WORKSTREAMS
- DIFFICULTY IN PRIORITISING AND SCOPING WORK
- WIDE VARIATION IN VENDOR BIDS
Achieving Business Agility
With fragmented documentation and differing views of what was needed, it was hard for NHBC to prioritise tasks, set project scope, or produce a clear statement for potential suppliers. The goal was therefore to achieve clarity and consistency in requirements across four portals and in sufficient depth to allow competitive (and realistic) responses. To get there meant thinking about the complexities of each workstream, how to align stakeholders, and then concisely articulating requirements as prioritised user stories. It was also important to break down the project into manageable phases, not just so that we could use key stakeholders’ time productively, but also to help suppliers understand how the project should be delivered.
The Solution
Estafet conducted a six-week Agile analysis for NHBC’s Web Transformation Project, focusing on four workstreams: Home User Guide, Partner Portal, Corporate Website, and Claims Portal. They organised over 40 workshops involving business, IT, and testing representatives to develop a comprehensive product backlog. Using a vertical slice approach, Estafet facilitated story-writing sessions to define user roles, stories, validation steps, complexity, and priority. This method allowed NHBC to prioritise features and phase the project effectively. The evolving backlog was continuously updated and shared with NHBC, enabling the organisation to move confidently toward tender with a clear, actionable specification for vendors.
Deliverables
- COMPREHENSIVE PRODUCT BACKLOG
- PHASED DELIVERY ROADMAP
- THE REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)
The Success
There were two key benefits for NHBC: they had a clear expression of requirement for the four portals which everyone agreed on, and that this could be translated into a clear RFP for suppliers. The phased roadmap then made it easy for suppliers to estimate and plan resources, whilst the use stories supported transparency and alignment between suppliers and stakeholders throughout the tendering process. The various suppliers all came back with clear and comparable quotes, building confidence in the project costs and timescales with NHBC budget-holders. Ultimately, Estafet’s Agile Analytics meant NHBC was well-prepared to move forward to delivery, reducing risk and uncertainty.
Outcomes
- CLARITY AND ALIGNMENT AMONGST STAKEHOLDERS
- STREAMLINED TENDERING PROCESS
- READINESS FOR DELIVERY
