Warranty

The objective of a Warranty is to ensure that new solutions are working as intended, and that resolutions to issues can be implemented rapidly.

Warranty Period

A Warranty Period is a predetermined period of time during which a delivery team will perform rapid maintenance for the solutions or parts of solutions they have implemented and released into production.

Small Increments

Not all solutions implemented by a delivery team will require warranty, particularly if it is a small incremental of value. This should be discussed, agreed, and documented.

During the warranty period, the delivery team will prepare the support team to adopt ongoing maintenance of the solution by providing a Support Handover.

The length of the warranty period, or whether one is required, must be guided my the nature of the problem and its solution. Longer delivery time-frames will usually require longer warranty periods. However, other factors such as the risk profile of the solution, downstream urgent work, and support team work load will also need to be considered.

Warranty Planning

During the design and implementation of a solution, the delivery team must determine a suitable warranty period and prepare to perform a support handover.

The delivery team must also plan key activities during the warranty period, for example monitoring for performance and stability. They will need to ensure that they have planned to accommodate unplanned work, such as bug fixes.

It will be necessary for the delivery team to collaborate with stakeholders, including the support team, in order to determine an appropriate warranty period.

The warranty plan must be communicated to stakeholders with suitable advanced notice.

Responsibilities

Owner	Responsibility
Delivery Owner	The Delivery Owner is responsible for ensuring that support plans are communicated and that key stakeholders are consulted.
Engineering Owner	The Engineering Owner accountable for the effective planning and execution of the warranty.

Triggers

The need for a warranty period should be determined during delivery planning.

The warranty plan must be produced and adapted throughout the implementation process, and must be agreed and communicated alongside release planning, and in advance of any releases.

Toolkit

Toolkit