Template: Go-Live Checklist

Don't leave your launch to chance. Use this checklist to make sure you've covered your bases before, during, and after you go live with your pilot.

Project

[Pilot Name]

Target launch date

[Date]

Phase 1: Pre-Launch Readiness (The Week Before)

Technical Hardening

• Final code review is complete.
• Security review passed.
• Cost and rate limits are set in the production environment.
• Logging and monitoring dashboards are live and tested.
• The "off-switch" or human fallback mechanism has been tested.

Organizational Readiness

• The one-page user guide ("playbook") is finalized.
• The initial group of pilot users has been confirmed.
• A 30-minute training session with pilot users is scheduled.

Phase 2: Launch Day

Morning of Launch

• Send a brief "Heads Up!" email to the pilot users.
• The project owner and lead engineer are available for real-time support.
• Deploy the feature to the initial user group.

Throughout the Day

• Monitor the "Daily Vitals Dashboard" like a hawk.
• Triage any immediate bugs or user issues.

Phase 3: Post-Launch (The First Week)

Monitoring & Feedback

• Hold a 15-minute check-in with the core team at the end of each day.
• Actively solicit feedback from the pilot users.
• Log all feedback and bugs in a central place.

Review & Reporting

• Schedule a "One Week In" review meeting with stakeholders.
• Prepare a short summary of the first week's metrics (cost, quality, speed) and user feedback.