The first 90 days: a kickoff that does not unravel
Most offshore engagements are won or lost in the first three weeks. A repeatable kickoff that sets cadence, acceptance, and escalation before anyone writes production code.
Week 0. Before kickoff
Acceptance criteria for gate one are drafted by the agency, redlined by the buyer, and signed before any environment is provisioned. No criteria, no kickoff.
Liaison sends the standing accountability email: response SLA, escalation procedure, the four covered-call types, and the verification page URL. That email is forwarded to anyone the buyer adds to the project later.
Week 1. Kickoff call
60 minutes, three agenda items, in this order: scope of gate one, named decision-makers on each side, escalation choreography. No tooling demos, no introductions theater.
Output: a one-page kickoff memo with the gate one date, the acceptance criteria, the named decision-maker on each side, and the liaison's response SLA. Memo is in the buyer's inbox before the call ends.
Weeks 2–4. Cadence lock-in
Standups happen between buyer and agency PM. Liaison is on the weekly written update only.
First milestone gate sits two weeks after kickoff regardless of progress. A failed first gate is healthier than a delayed one. It surfaces the conversation that needs to happen.
By day 30, the buyer should be able to recite the next two gate dates without looking. If they cannot, cadence is not yet locked.
- 01Acceptance criteria for the first gate exist before any environment is provisioned.
- 02Kickoff produces a one-page memo signed by both sides within the hour.
- 03By day 30 the buyer can recite the next two gate dates from memory.