Proof of Concept (POC) Template: A Practical Guide | Software Engineering Practices

1. Introduction

1.1 POC Objective / Hypothesis

Purpose: Clearly state the primary technical question the POC aims to answer. This should be a specific, testable hypothesis.
- Example: "To prove that we can achieve a sub-200ms response time for a vector search across 1 million documents using the XYZ vector database on a t3.medium instance."

1.2 Scope & Success Criteria

In Scope: A bulleted list of the only things that will be built or tested. Be ruthless in cutting anything not essential to proving the hypothesis.
- Example: "A command-line script that seeds the database and a single API endpoint that triggers the core logic."
Success Criteria: Measurable, binary (yes/no) outcomes that will determine if the POC was successful. This is the most important part of the document.
- Example: "The API endpoint consistently returns a result in under 200ms over 100 test runs."

1.3 Out of Scope

Explicitly list what is not being done to manage expectations. This prevents "scope creep" even at the POC stage.
- Example: "User interface, authentication, error handling beyond basic logs, production deployment, or code scalability."

2. Core Functionality & Technical Approach

Functionality to be Built: Describe the minimal piece of software that needs to be created for the experiment.
- Example: "A Python script that uses the requests library to call the third-party API, process the JSON response, and print the result."
Conceptual Architecture: A very simple diagram or description of the components involved. This is not a full C4 model, but a sketch to show how the pieces of the experiment fit together. A simple block diagram is often sufficient.
- Example: [Test Script] -> [Third-Party API] -> [Console Output]

3. Key Assumptions & Dependencies

3.1 Assumptions

What are we taking for granted for this experiment to be valid?
- Example: "We assume the third-party API's sandbox environment accurately reflects its production performance."

3.2 Dependencies

What external factors, tools, or access are required?
- Example: "Access to the company's AWS sandbox account."

4. Constraints

4.1 Time Constraint

The strict deadline for the POC. POCs should be heavily time-boxed.
- Example: "This POC must be completed within 5 working days."

4.2 Technology Stack

The specific technologies, libraries, or frameworks that will be used.
- Example: "Python 3.10, FastAPI, Docker."

5. Results & Conclusion

(To be filled out after the POC is complete)
Outcome: Was the POC successful based on the success criteria defined in 1.2? (Yes/No).
Key Findings: A summary of what was learned. This includes quantitative results (e.g., "Average response time was 153ms") and qualitative insights (e.g., "The API's documentation was misleading regarding rate limits, requiring a workaround.").
Recommendation: What is the next step?
- Example: "Proceed with this technology for the MVP."

# Proof of Concept (POC): [Name of Concept]

### 1. Introduction
#### 1.1 POC Objective / Hypothesis
*   **Purpose:** Clearly state the primary technical question the POC aims to answer. This should be a specific, testable hypothesis.
    *   *Example: "To prove that we can achieve a sub-200ms response time for a vector search across 1 million documents using the XYZ vector database on a t3.medium instance."*
    *   *Example: "To validate that we can successfully integrate with the Stripe Connect API to handle multi-party payments for our specific transaction model."*

#### 1.2 Scope & Success Criteria
*   **In Scope:** A bulleted list of the *only* things that will be built or tested. Be ruthless in cutting anything not essential to proving the hypothesis.
    *   *Example: "A command-line script that seeds the database."*
    *   *Example: "A single, hardcoded API endpoint that triggers the core logic."*
*   **Success Criteria:** Measurable, binary (yes/no) outcomes that will determine if the POC was successful. This is the most important part of the document.
    *   *Example: "The API endpoint consistently returns a result in under 200ms over 100 test runs."*
    *   *Example: "A test payment is successfully processed and funds are correctly allocated to the connected test accounts."*

#### 1.3 Out of Scope
*   Explicitly list what is **not** being done to manage expectations. This prevents "scope creep" even at the POC stage.
    *   *Example: "User interface (UI) of any kind."*
    *   *Example: "User authentication or authorization."*
    *   *Example: "Error handling beyond basic console logs."*
    *   *Example: "Deployment to a production environment."*
    *   *Example: "Code scalability, maintainability, or test coverage."*

### 2. Core Functionality & Technical Approach
*   **Functionality to be Built:** Describe the minimal piece of software that needs to be created for the experiment.
    *   *Example: "A Python script that uses the `requests` library to call the third-party API, process the JSON response, and print the result."*
*   **Conceptual Architecture:** A very simple diagram or description of the components involved. This is not a full C4 model, but a sketch to show how the pieces of the experiment fit together. A simple block diagram is often sufficient.
    *   *Example: `[Test Script] -> [Third-Party API] -> [Console Output]`*

### 3. Key Assumptions & Dependencies
#### 3.1 Assumptions
*   What are we taking for granted for this experiment to be valid?
    *   *Example: "We assume the third-party API's sandbox environment accurately reflects its production performance."*
#### 3.2 Dependencies
*   What external factors, tools, or access are required?
    *   *Example: "Access to the company's AWS sandbox account."*

### 4. Constraints
#### 4.1 Time Constraint
*   The strict deadline for the POC. POCs should be heavily time-boxed.
    *   *Example: "This POC must be completed within 5 working days."*
#### 4.2 Technology Stack
*   The specific technologies, libraries, or frameworks that will be used.
    *   *Example: "Python 3.10, FastAPI, Docker."*

### 5. Results & Conclusion
*   **(To be filled out after the POC is complete)**
*   **Outcome:** Was the POC successful based on the success criteria defined in 1.2? (Yes/No).
*   **Key Findings:** A summary of what was learned. This includes quantitative results (e.g., "Average response time was 153ms") and qualitative insights (e.g., "The API's documentation was misleading regarding rate limits, requiring a workaround.").
*   **Recommendation:** What is the next step?
    *   *Example: "Proceed with this technology for the MVP."*
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