From idea to release: The 6-week development process of Recras

Moving forward every 6 weeks.

Our development process

At Recras, we never stand still. We are passionate about building a product we’re proud of, we listen carefully to feedback from our members, and secretly, we are our own worst critics. To ensure we keep innovating without losing sight of quality and focus, we work in a fixed rhythm: we develop our software in six-week cycles.

But how do we make sure that during those six weeks we don’t just build ‘anything’, but set the right priorities? We’d love to give you a look behind the scenes of our development process.

Our annual survey

To know what to build, we look first and foremost at our members. We are closely involved with the leisure business owners who use our system, and that continuous contact sparks a steady stream of new ideas and requests. Still, we naturally speak to some business owners more often than others. Some have been using Recras for so long that we simply don’t hear from them as much, purely because everything has been running like clockwork for years.

That is precisely why the comprehensive survey we send out at the end of every year is so valuable to us. It is the way for absolutely everyone to make their voice heard. It gives us a complete, honest, and clear picture of what is happening on the ground, which features truly make a difference, and where the pain points lie. The insights and feedback from this survey form the common thread and inspiration for the projects we take on in our six-week cycles throughout the following year.

Kickoff: Ideas, preparation, and the pitch

Every new six-week cycle begins with our project selection process. What makes this approach unique is that anyone at Recras (regardless of their role) can propose ideas for new features or improvements.

There is one key ground rule, though: an idea must be thoroughly worked out in advance. Well before the actual selection takes place, the proposal is shared internally so colleagues have the chance to review it, ask sharp questions, and provide input.

During project selection, the person behind the idea pitches it to the rest of the team. Afterwards, we make the decision together. The outcome of such a session can go one of three ways:

  • Green light: The idea is selected, and the developers get to work on it over the next 6 weeks.

  • Back to the drawing board: The idea is great, but the proposal still raises a few questions.

  • Rejected: The idea doesn’t make the cut. Often simply because other priorities take precedence at that moment and there is no time for it.

The build phase and short lines of communication

Once the projects are selected, they are assigned to the developers. A key part of our approach is that the person who pitched the idea stays closely involved throughout the entire process. They test intermediate versions along the way and provide direct feedback to the developers. This keeps communication lines short and prevents the final result from straying from the original idea.

The essential testing phase

Even the best developers need a safety net. That’s why we always conclude the development phase with a thorough, dedicated testing round. This is the quality check where we review the system top to bottom to make 100% sure that everything works flawlessly and absolutely nothing has been missed. Only when everything is completely stable does the update get a ‘go’.

Team-wide evaluation

After six weeks, it’s time to take stock. We bring the entire team together for the project evaluation. During this session, the developers showcase the results of the past few weeks and demonstrate how the new feature works in practice. It’s a great moment to review the outcome together and wrap up the cycle on a high note.

Sharing updates with our members

And that brings everything full circle. Once the project evaluation is wrapped up and the new features are live, we compile all the news into our newsletter. This ensures all our members are immediately up to speed on the latest features and improvements in Recras.

By working this way, we keep improving our product step by step. Not top-down, but as one team that chooses, builds, and evaluates together with our members.