Why build a Software Development Lifecycle solution based on Visual Studio Team System?
Avanade has over 2500 solution developers worldwide focused on the .NET platform that work with customers to integrate Microsoft technologies in heterogeneous enterprise IT environments. As we execute large and complex projects, building mission-critical applications with geographically distributed teams, we have little room for error - the success of the project depends on how accurately we can estimate and deliver on the engagement. To this end, we are constantly looking for ways to improve consistency and repeatability of our development process and thus increase the productivity of our project teams. In other words, our project execution must be industrialized. Industrialization is about being predictable, repeatable, consistent, and high-quality.
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Laying Out the Foundations
Now that you’ve convinced the client that you can create a cool web site to complement the client’s store activity, it’s time to stop celebrating and start thinking about how to put into practice all the promises made to the client. As usual, when you lay down on paper the technical requirements you must meet, everything starts to seem a bit more complicated than initially anticipated.

It is strongly recommended to consistently follow an efficient project-management methodology to maximize the chances of the project’s success, on budget and on time. Most project-management theories imply that an initial requirements/specifications document containing the details of the project you’re about to create has been signed by you and the client. You can use this document as a guide while creating the solution, and it also allows you to charge extra in case the client brings new requirements or requests changes after development has started. See Appendix B for more details.
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