Partner-Led Checklist
This article is a quick checklist for organizations engaging a System Integrator (SI) partner for their first Unqork application build where the partner leads the development. Its purpose is to allow you to establish a strong foundational understanding of the Unqork platform while ensuring strict Delivery Oversight. This ensures that even without building personally, your team gains the necessary knowledge to guarantee the partner builds a performant, scalable application that your organization can eventually maintain or expand upon.
We recommend reading the full document in addition to using this checklist found here.
Meeting Checklist
This cadence ensures your team is not a passive bystander. Rigor and accountability from your SI Partner are required to catch issues early and build your team's platform literacy. All team members should simultaneously pursue Unqork Academy certifications to better understand the partner's technical language.
Meeting | Cadence | Attendees | Purpose |
Stand-up | Daily | Business Lead, Technical Lead, Observers | Observational Planning. Listen to progress and identify any blockers the partner is facing to understand the development lifecycle. |
Sprint Planning | Weekly | Application Engineers, Business Analyst | Requirement Breakdown. Learn how the partner translates requirements into specific Unqork tasks and tickets. |
Knowledge Transfer Sync | Weekly | All Team Members | Platform Fundamentals. A dedicated session where the partner explains a specific component or logic they built that week and why they chose that approach.. |
Architecture Review | Bi-Weekly | Technical Lead, Solution Architect | Technical Sign-off. Review the evolving design. Focus on scalability and how the application interacts with your existing tech stack |
Bi-Weekly Sprint Demo | Bi-Weekly | Technical Lead, Business Analyst | Feature Validation. Formally accept or reject features. Ensure the delivered work aligns with the original vision and is "user-friendly". |
Executive Steering | Monthly | Sponsor, Business Lead, Technical Lead | Risk & Strategic Alignment. High-level review of ROI, timeline risks, and partner performance. |
IV. Client-Owned Governance Artifacts Review
In a partner-led build, these documents are essential. They represent the "knowledge" a partner is handing off to you. You must review them for clarity so a person who didn't build the app (your team) can understand them. Many of these documents need to be initially generated by you and delivered to the partner, but a formal sign off from the partner is needed for each to ensure what you have provided is feasible and within the scope of phase 1 of the application.
Before signing off on these documents, please make sure you are confident in the depth and completeness of each. Asking clarifying questions before acceptance should be the norm. Here are a few sample questions to ask yourself to ensure you are prepared to take over the application:
Is the language in this document too technical, or can our Business Lead understand it?
If the partner team left tomorrow, could we use this Runbook to fix a minor issue?
Does the Data Dictionary clearly define what every field does?
Are the API response times documented so we know what "normal" performance looks like?
Received? | Artifact | Purpose or Description | Phase |
| Project Plan | Detailed schedule including tasks, resource assignments, and overall timeline management. | Kickoff |
| Stakeholder Interview Questions | The guide used by the Partner to capture key perspectives and alignment from leadership and process owners. | Kickoff |
| Non-Functional Requirements | Defines technical criteria for system operation, including performance, security, and compliance requirements (NFRs). | Kickoff |
| User Persona | Defines the goals, needs, and pain points of the different end-user types (e.g., Submitter, Approver). | Kickoff |
| Environment Setup Tracker | Tracks the status, access keys, and configuration details of all development and testing environments. | Kickoff |
| Functional Requirements | Defines what the application must do, detailing specific application behavior and features. | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| Business Process Architecture | Documents a high-level view of the entire application flow end-to-end, including roles and integration points. | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| Solutions Architecture (System Context) | High-level technical overview of the application's place in the broader system landscape and core technical strategy. | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| API Specification | Details all external API calls, including resilience strategy, authentication scheme, and request/response schemas. | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| Integrations Summary Deck | High-level summary of all systems to be integrated, including status and data flow. | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| Data Model | Illustrates how data entities (people, objects, concepts) relate to each other, often including schemas and an Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD). | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| Data Dictionary | Collects descriptions of all data objects, fields, and items used in the data model. | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| Data Architecture Components | Documents data sources, acquisition, transformation, storage, retention, and exit strategy. | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| RBAC Diagram | Documents the application's roles, groups, and the approach to restricting module and submission access. | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| QA Test Strategy | Defines the methodology, tools, and overall approach for quality assurance and testing efforts. | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| Test Scenario and Test Case | Detailed list of scenarios and specific steps for formal testing and validation. | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| Artifact Process Flow (UI Example) | Documents the application flow and provides visual user interface examples (wireframes/mockups). | Discovery and Requirements Gathering |
| Release Roadmap | High-level plan showing architecture, configuration, and final release milestones. | Go Live and Handoff |
| Runbook / Production Readiness Guide | Step-by-step guide for monitoring, troubleshooting, and resolving common incidents after go-live (L1/L2 support). | Go Live and Handoff |
| Configuration Documentation | Explains complex module configurations, custom settings, and rationale for using specific components for future maintenance. | Go Live and Handoff |
| NFR Validation Report | Formal report proving the application meets all agreed-upon Non-Functional Requirements (e.g., latency, peak load, security checks). | Go Live and Handoff |
