This is the exact methodology we used for the ImageFlow project, and it resulted in new discoveries of how people use and understand WordPress that hopefully will make their way into core at some point in the future.

The new procedure outlined is the only way we can build solutions that actually work for and the way the people who use WordPress want and need them to. The plugin-first approach of the past can easily lead to passion projects driven by assumptions. By implementing user testing, UX, and feasibility studies in the beginning, we can produce better solutions that work for more people.