Pilot to rollout guide¶
Use this guide to move from evaluation to production adoption with measurable exit criteria.
Stage 1: Evaluation¶
Goal¶
Prove canonical path works in representative repositories.
Entry criteria¶
- Team sponsor and release owner assigned.
- Baseline repo selected.
- Target lane selected (Startup/Scale/Regulated).
Exit criteria (measurable)¶
| Check | Threshold | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Canonical path runs in baseline repo | 1/1 successful run with artifacts produced | build/gate-fast.json, build/release-preflight.json, build/doctor.json |
| Onboarding baseline captured | Week-1 seed KPI payload committed | docs/kpi-weekly-<date>.json |
| Ownership model set | All 5 workstreams have DRI listed | docs/top-tier-program-dashboard.md |
Stage 2: Pilot¶
Goal¶
Validate repeatability across multiple teams/repos.
Entry criteria¶
- Evaluation exit criteria complete.
- Lane selected (Startup/Scale/Regulated).
- Weekly status cadence announced.
Exit criteria (measurable)¶
| Check | Threshold | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Pilot coverage | At least 3 repos onboarded (or approved pilot size) | Portfolio scorecard JSON |
| Weekly operating rhythm | 2 consecutive weekly cycles completed | Weekly executive reports |
| Escalation readiness | 1 incident/escalation workflow practiced | Incident log + support model reference |
| Portfolio contract adoption | Scorecard payload emitted with schema_version and required totals |
docs/artifacts/portfolio-scorecard-*.json |
Stage 3: Production rollout¶
Goal¶
Operationalize portfolio reporting and governance at org level.
Entry criteria¶
- Pilot criteria complete with leadership sign-off.
- Monthly leadership review template ready.
Exit criteria (measurable)¶
| Check | Threshold | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Portfolio reporting operational | Weekly scorecard generated for active repos for 4 straight weeks | Portfolio scorecard artifacts |
| Governance enforcement active | Compatibility/deprecation reviews completed monthly | Governance policy docs + review notes |
| Leadership reporting institutionalized | Weekly + monthly executive reports used in cadence | docs/executive-weekly-*.md, docs/executive-monthly-*.md |
| Release package readiness | Full release package checklist passes for release train | docs/full-release-package-checklist.md |
Recommended 30/60/90 checkpoints¶
- Day 30: evaluation complete + KPI baseline payload + DRI assignment.
- Day 60: pilot steady-state + 2 weekly cycles + escalation rehearsal.
- Day 90: 4-week portfolio reporting streak + monthly leadership review + release package checklist adoption.
Stage gate command set¶
Use this command set before each stage sign-off:
python -m sdetkit gate fast --format json --stable-json --out build/gate-fast.json
python -m sdetkit gate release --format json --out build/release-preflight.json
python -m sdetkit doctor --format json --out build/doctor.json
python scripts/build_portfolio_scorecard.py --in <normalized-input> --out <portfolio-scorecard.json> --schema-version 1.0.0 --window-start <YYYY-MM-DD> --window-end <YYYY-MM-DD>
Common failure modes and mitigations¶
| Failure mode | Signal | Mitigation |
|---|---|---|
| Scope too broad | Too many repos in initial pilot | Limit to highest-impact services first |
| No clear ownership | Repeated missed commitments | Assign DRI per workstream and publish weekly |
| Data inconsistency | KPI disputes every week | Freeze schema for reporting window |
| Escalation drift | Severity decisions differ by team | Enforce one support model + monthly calibration |