The Framework Platform

Ten Universal Functional Slots in Development

Every development framework — regardless of philosophy — fills the same functional slots:

Functional Slot	Description
Work Discovery	Determine what to build
Work Prioritization	Decide what first
Work Decomposition	Break large efforts into manageable units
Work Execution	Build the deliverable
Quality Assurance	Verify expectations are met
Integration	Combine outputs into a coherent whole
Delivery	Get the product to users
Feedback Collection	Learn whether the product solves the problem
Process Governance	Authorization, tracking, risk management
Process Improvement	Reflect and evolve the process

Four Variation Points

The frameworks differ at four points:

1. VP1: Temporal Structure — sequential phases · fixed iterations · continuous flow · exploratory loops
2. VP2: Requirements Stability Assumption — knowable upfront · emergent · hypotheses
3. VP3: Authority & Decision Structure — hierarchical PM · PO + team · shared · automated pipeline
4. VP4: QA Timing — end-phase · per-iteration · continuous automated · user validation

The full decomposition and variation point analysis is in Eight Frameworks Decomposed.