Full release package checklist

Use this checklist before approving an organization-level rollout or major release train.

1) Product readiness

• Canonical path artifacts attached (gate-fast.json, release-preflight.json, doctor.json).
• Release confidence decision recorded (ship / no-ship) with owner sign-off.
• KPI snapshot attached for the release window (docs/kpi-weekly-<date>.json).

2) Documentation readiness

• Release notes drafted and reviewed.
• Migration/compatibility notes updated.
• Operator runbook links verified (operations-handbook.md, escalation model, policy matrix).

3) Security and compliance readiness

• Security scan outputs attached (or exception record approved).
• Dependency/update exceptions documented.
• Compliance controls impacted by release are reviewed and signed.

4) Support readiness

• Severity owner and incident commander on-call for release window.
• Escalation communication template pre-filled.
• Rollback owner and rollback window documented.

5) Communications readiness

• Internal stakeholder announcement drafted.
• External/customer comms plan prepared if user-visible impact exists.
• Leadership summary entry prepared for weekly/monthly reporting.

6) Final go/no-go gate

• All critical checklist items are complete or have approved exception links.
• Release owner + platform owner + QA governance signoff captured.
• Evidence bundle archived in release artifacts.

Evidence bundle index (minimum)

• build/gate-fast.json
• build/release-preflight.json
• build/doctor.json
• docs/kpi-weekly-<date>.json
• docs/executive-weekly-<date>.md
• portfolio scorecard for the same window