Product Requirement Document: Facility Reservation System

Version: 1.0
Date: 2025-06-14
Author: Tomochika Hara Status: Draft

Executive Summary

The Facility Reservation System is a lightweight, API-first platform designed to solve the chaos of shared space management in organizations. Unlike bloated enterprise solutions or inadequate calendar-based workarounds, our system provides a focused, cost-effective solution for organizations that need reliable facility booking without vendor lock-in.

Current State: Foundation complete with user/facility management and robust API architecture
Target State: Complete reservation platform with real-time booking, conflict resolution, and analytics

Key Value Propositions

Simplicity over complexity: Focused on core booking workflows, not feature bloat
API-first architecture: Enables custom integrations and client applications
Cost-effective: Self-hosted alternative to expensive enterprise solutions
Developer-friendly: Type-safe APIs with auto-generated client SDKs

Problem Statement

The Booking Chaos Problem

Organizations with shared facilities face a persistent set of problems that existing solutions fail to address adequately:

Current Pain Points:

Double Bookings: Without centralized visibility, conflicts are discovered too late
Booking Friction: Complex enterprise tools discourage usage, leading to informal “desk camping”
No Visibility: Can’t see what’s available, when, or who’s using what
Manual Overhead: Administrative burden of managing bookings, resolving conflicts
Poor User Experience: Clunky interfaces that don’t match how people actually work
Cost Prohibitive: Enterprise solutions cost more than the problem they solve for smaller organizations

Why Existing Solutions Fall Short

Solution Type	Problems
Google Calendar/Outlook	No conflict prevention, poor facility metadata, calendar spam
Enterprise Software	Expensive, complex, vendor lock-in, over-engineered
Spreadsheets/Manual	No conflict detection, poor user experience, administrative overhead
Physical Sign-ups	No advance planning, information silos, no analytics

Target Organization Profile

Organizations that would benefit most:

50-500 employees (too big for manual, too small for enterprise solutions)
Multiple shared spaces (meeting rooms, equipment, common areas)
Cost-conscious (need ROI justification for tools)
Tech-savvy enough to appreciate API-first approach
Growth-oriented (need scalable solutions)

User Personas & Core Workflows

Primary Personas

1. Emma - The Busy Employee

Role: Marketing Manager
Goals: Book meeting rooms quickly for client calls and team meetings
Frustrations: Current booking system is slow, often double-books, can’t see room features

Key Workflows:

Quick availability check for immediate meetings
Advance booking for scheduled meetings
Modify/cancel bookings when plans change
Find rooms with specific features (projector, video conferencing)

2. Marcus - The Facility Administrator

Role: Office Manager
Goals: Minimize booking conflicts, maximize space utilization, reduce administrative overhead
Frustrations: Constantly resolving double-bookings, no data on space usage, manual processes

Key Workflows:

Monitor overall facility utilization
Resolve booking conflicts and emergencies
Generate usage reports for planning
Manage facility information and availability

3. Sarah - The Executive Assistant

Role: EA to C-suite
Goals: Efficiently book spaces for executives and manage complex scheduling
Frustrations: No way to book on behalf of others, limited visibility into executive preferences

Key Workflows:

Book facilities on behalf of executives
Coordinate complex multi-room events
Access real-time availability during scheduling calls
Manage recurring meeting room needs

Secondary Personas

4. David - The IT Administrator

Role: IT Operations
Goals: Deploy and maintain systems with minimal overhead
Frustrations: Vendor lock-in, expensive licensing, integration complexity

5. Lisa - The Department Head

Role: Sales Director
Goals: Ensure team has access to spaces needed for productivity
Frustrations: No visibility into team booking patterns, can’t plan for growing space needs

Product Goals & Success Metrics

Primary Goals

Goal 1: Eliminate Double Bookings

Success Metric: <1% conflict rate after 30 days of usage
Measurement: Conflicting reservations / total reservations

Goal 2: Reduce Booking Friction

Success Metric: Average booking time <60 seconds
Measurement: Time from search to confirmed booking

Goal 3: Increase Space Utilization

Success Metric: 20% increase in measured facility usage
Measurement: Hours booked / available hours

Secondary Goals

Goal 4: Administrative Efficiency

Success Metric: 80% reduction in manual booking administration
Measurement: Admin time spent on booking issues

Goal 5: User Adoption

Success Metric: 70% of eligible users actively booking within 60 days
Measurement: Monthly active users / total potential users

Goal 6: System Reliability

Success Metric: 99.5% uptime during business hours
Measurement: System availability monitoring

Leading Indicators

Daily active users
Bookings per user per week
Average time to complete booking
User retention rate
Support ticket volume

Functional Requirements

Phase 1: Core Booking Engine (MVP 1.0)

FR-1: Real-Time Availability Search

Priority: P0 (Must Have)
User Story: As Emma, I want to see real-time availability so I can quickly find and book spaces

Requirements:

Search by date/time range
Filter by facility features (capacity, equipment)
Real-time conflict detection
Display facility details and photos

Acceptance Criteria:

Search results returned in <2 seconds
Availability updates in real-time as bookings change
Conflicts prevented at booking time, not after

FR-2: Simple Booking Creation

Priority: P0 (Must Have)
User Story: As Emma, I want to book a room in under 60 seconds

Requirements:

One-click booking for available slots
Basic booking details (title, description, attendees)
Immediate confirmation

Acceptance Criteria:

Booking process completable in <60 seconds
Immediate visual confirmation
Booking appears in all relevant views immediately

FR-3: Booking Management

Priority: P0 (Must Have)
User Story: As Emma, I want to modify or cancel my bookings when plans change

Requirements:

View my current and upcoming bookings
Modify booking details and times
Cancel bookings with appropriate notice
Rebooking suggestions when modifications conflict

FR-4: Basic Admin Controls

Priority: P0 (Must Have)
User Story: As Marcus, I need basic oversight of the booking system

Requirements:

View all facility bookings
Cancel bookings in emergency situations
Basic utilization reporting
User management integration

Phase 2: Enhanced User Experience (MVP 1.5)

FR-5: Recurring Bookings

Priority: P1 (Should Have)
User Story: As Emma, I want to book recurring team meetings without repetitive work

Requirements:

Weekly/monthly recurring patterns
Exception handling for holidays/conflicts
Bulk modification of recurring series
Smart conflict resolution

Technical Requirements

Performance Requirements

TR-1: Response Time

API Response Time: <200ms for 95th percentile
Search Results: <2 seconds for complex queries
Booking Confirmation: <1 second for successful bookings

TR-2: Scalability

Concurrent Users: Support 100 concurrent users initially, scalable to 1000
Database: Handle 10,000 facilities and 100,000 bookings
Growth: 10x growth capacity without architecture changes

TR-3: Availability

Uptime: 99.5% during business hours (8 AM - 6 PM local time)
Planned Maintenance: Outside business hours only
Disaster Recovery: 4-hour RTO, 1-hour RPO

Security Requirements

TR-4: Authentication & Authorization

User Authentication: Integration with existing SSO systems
API Security: OAuth 2.0 / JWT tokens
Role-Based Access: Admin, user, read-only roles
Audit Logging: All booking actions logged with user attribution

TR-5: Data Protection

Data Encryption: At rest and in transit
Privacy Compliance: GDPR/CCPA compliance for user data
Data Retention: Configurable retention policies
Backup Security: Encrypted backups with tested recovery

Integration Requirements

TR-6: API-First Architecture

REST API: Complete functionality exposed via REST
OpenAPI: Comprehensive API documentation

Implementation Phases

Phase 0: Foundation (COMPLETE)

Timeline: Already implemented
Status: ✅ Complete

API architecture with TypeSpec/ogen
User management system
Facility management (CRUD)
Database schema and migrations
Type-safe code generation pipeline

Phase 1: Core Booking (MVP 1.0)

Timeline: 6-8 weeks
Target Completion: End of Q3 2025

Week 1-2: Booking Data Model

Reservation schema design
Time slot management
Conflict detection algorithms
Database migrations

Week 3-4: Booking API

Create/read/update/delete reservations
Real-time availability checking
Conflict prevention
Basic search functionality

Week 5-6: User Interface

Booking creation flow
Calendar/grid view of availability
My bookings management
Admin oversight dashboard

Week 7-8: Integration & Testing

API documentation
End-to-end testing
Performance optimization

Phase 2: Enhanced Experience (MVP 1.5)

Timeline: 4-6 weeks
Target Completion: End of Q4 2025

Core Features:

Advanced search and filtering
Recurring bookings
Proxy booking capabilities
Mobile-responsive interface
Basic reporting

Phase 3: Analytics & Optimization (MVP 2.0)

Timeline: 6-8 weeks
Target Completion: End of Q1 2026

Core Features:

Comprehensive analytics dashboard
Usage optimization recommendations
Advanced integrations (calendar sync)
Machine learning recommendations
Multi-tenant architecture

Competitive Analysis

Direct Competitors

Enterprise Solutions

Examples: Robin, OfficeSpace, AskCody
Strengths: Feature-rich, enterprise integrations
Weaknesses: Expensive ($5-15/user/month), complex setup, vendor lock-in
Our Advantage: Cost-effective, API-first, self-hosted option

Calendar-Based Solutions

Examples: Google Calendar resources, Outlook room booking
Strengths: Familiar interface, existing calendar integration
Weaknesses: Poor conflict prevention, limited facility metadata, calendar spam
Our Advantage: Purpose-built for facilities, real-time conflict prevention

Custom Internal Solutions

Examples: Spreadsheets, wikis, internal apps
Strengths: Familiar to organization, no cost
Weaknesses: No conflict detection, poor user experience, manual overhead
Our Advantage: Professional solution without enterprise cost/complexity

Market Positioning

Target Market: Mid-market organizations (50-500 employees)
Position: “Simple, API-first facility booking for growing organizations”
Key Differentiators:

Cost-effective: Fraction of enterprise solution cost
Developer-friendly: API-first with auto-generated clients
Self-hosted option: No vendor lock-in or data privacy concerns
Purpose-built: Designed specifically for facility booking, not adapted from calendar systems

Risk Assessment & Mitigation

High-Risk Areas

Risk 1: User Adoption

Description: Users continue informal booking methods instead of using the system
Probability: Medium
Impact: High
Mitigation:

Simple, fast user experience (sub-60 second bookings)
Gradual rollout with power user champions
Integration with existing workflows (calendar sync)
Clear administrative policy requiring system usage

Risk 2: Technical Complexity

Description: Real-time booking conflicts and race conditions
Probability: Medium
Impact: High
Mitigation:

Database-level conflict prevention
Comprehensive testing of concurrent booking scenarios
Graceful error handling and user feedback
Monitoring and alerting for booking conflicts

Risk 3: Scalability Bottlenecks

Description: System performance degrades with increased usage
Probability: Low
Impact: Medium
Mitigation:

Load testing during development
Database optimization and indexing
Horizontal scaling architecture
Performance monitoring and alerting

Medium-Risk Areas

Risk 4: Integration Challenges

Description: Difficulty integrating with existing organizational systems
Probability: Medium
Impact: Medium
Mitigation:

API-first design for easier integration
Standard authentication protocols (OAuth, SAML)
Comprehensive API documentation and SDKs
Professional services for complex integrations

Risk 5: Competitive Response

Description: Established players reduce prices or improve offerings
Probability: High
Impact: Low
Mitigation:

Focus on unique value propositions (API-first, self-hosted)
Continuous feature development
Strong user community building
Open-source option for vendor independence

Success Criteria & Launch Readiness

MVP 1.0 Launch Criteria

Functional Completeness

Users can search for available facilities
Users can create bookings without conflicts
Users can view and manage their bookings
Admins can oversee facility usage

Performance Standards

Search results load in <2 seconds
Booking creation completes in <1 second
System handles 50 concurrent users
99% uptime during testing period

User Experience

Average booking time <60 seconds
<5% user-reported confusion during onboarding
Positive feedback from beta users
Admin dashboard provides necessary oversight

Technical Quality

All API endpoints documented and tested
End-to-end test suite passes
Security scan shows no critical vulnerabilities
Database performance optimized for expected load

Post-Launch Success Metrics

30-Day Targets

70% of eligible users have created at least one booking
<1% booking conflicts requiring admin intervention
Average booking time <60 seconds
90% user satisfaction rating

90-Day Targets

80% of facility hours are booked through the system
20% increase in overall facility utilization
<2 support tickets per week
Break-even on development costs (if commercial)

Appendices

Appendix A: User Research Summary

[Placeholder for user interviews, surveys, and market research data]

Appendix B: Technical Architecture References

Appendix C: Competitive Feature Matrix

[Detailed comparison of features across competing solutions]

Appendix D: Financial Projections

[Development costs, operational costs, and ROI analysis]

This PRD is a living document that will be updated as we learn more about user needs and market conditions. For questions or feedback, contact Tomochika Hara