Centralized Decision List
During the implementation stage of software development there are always edge cases not covered in the functional specifications. What if the data imported from the other system is incomplete? Which user input fields should be made mandatory in the case of unforeseen dependencies? If there is no value for a field, should an empty string or a ‘0′ be displayed? And so on.
Meetings will be held and emails will fly back and forth. Decisions will go first one way, then the other. If there a lot of issues, people will invariably be unclear on the current status. In the rush to meet the release date a few details will inevitably slip through the cracks. Then a familiar refrain will emerge: “I thought that we decided to do it the other way, not this way ..?”
This is where centralized, editable documents come in handy (and where Microsoft SharePoint can actually be of use). There should be a list of issues and the current decision for each issue, with an optional column for remarks. The rationale behind each decision could be also be included in a separate section if so desired. The extra effort in maintaining this document would be worth it even if only one defect is eliminated.
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