Last week our blog discussed the remaining answers to the questions and promised that we would look in detail at two of the answers (which are somewhat similar so we will concentrate on one only).
There is nothing in the contract (contract is signed) and there is no intention of putting anything in the contract about Quality Assurance.
Now you have a challenge. Clearly the process is mostly done and there is absolutely no buy-in to Quality Assurance. The next question that needs to be asked is “Why have you brought Quality Assurance in if there is no interest?”
The key steps here are to determine your position and map out your strategy. There is any number of answers to the question of “Why have you brought Quality Assurance in if there is no interest”.
- The final client has belatedly required it. I.e. they have realised it is an omission from the contract and now feel it is incumbent on the System Integrator to provide this as part of the deliverables. You need to determine the final clients needs and work towards those.
- The solution is more complex than the System Integrator thought and now they feel a need for Quality Assurance. I.e. like the client above they have realised the value provided by Quality Assurance and now want to implement it even though they were trying to avoid it earlier. There is probably still little buy-in from most of the group. You need to look at each of the Stakeholders and determine their status vis-a-vis Quality Assurance and plan to convert them all to supporters. This is a crucial piece of your strategy in order to be successful.
- The System Integrator’s management is becoming nervous and wants Quality Assurance there as a check. While you have management support the team may feel they have an extra burden and possibly someone who is watching them. As in the above, you will need to look at the Stakeholders and see how to convert them to supporters. Otherwise you will get no information at all.
- The last possibility is they want someone to blame. This is a tricky one. No matter what you do (either proactively or reactively) they may blame you. You need to plan carefully in order to make sure that your work is recognised as contributing to the success of the project. You need to be very proactive in stating what needs to be done; why it needs to be done and the benefits accruing from having it done. And make sure that everything is documented!
Happy New year