Start with an outcome, not a feature list
Describe who will use the system and the problem it should solve. Instead of “we need an AI agent”, name a concrete operation: prepare a suggested support response from an internal knowledge base. Identify who evaluates the result and which actions require approval.
Map the existing system
List applications, languages, databases, cloud services and external systems. For each integration, note whether API documentation, a test environment and a technical owner are available. Do not include passwords, tokens or real personal data in an initial email.
Identify critical workflows
Choose the operations where a failure has the greatest business impact. Describe inputs, expected results and known exceptions. These scenarios inform the estimate and the test strategy.
Make constraints explicit
Share timelines, a budget range, data hosting requirements and your team’s available resources. Separate a mandatory launch date from a preferred one. Identify dependencies on other vendors and external systems.
Agree on how to verify the outcome
Development needs acceptance criteria and operating conditions. Test automation needs coverage boundaries and release rules. An agent needs reference scenarios, acceptable errors, response time expectations and API cost limits.
Prepare a short brief
One page is enough: the business problem, users, current stack, integrations, key workflows, constraints and a technical contact. Mark unknown information explicitly so it can be investigated during discovery.
Your first email
Our challenge: …
Users: …
Current system: …
Required integrations: …
Expected outcome: …
Timeline and constraints: …