Change request to go live protocol

Change Request to Go-Live Protocol

Purpose

This skill defines how a Dynamics 365 change request is taken from intake through impact assessment, fit-gap analysis, UAT sign-off, go/no-go decision, go-live execution, and hypercare, aligned to the Microsoft Success by Design framework. It applies the Success by Design gate structure — Solution Blueprint Review, Implementation Reviews, and Go-live Readiness Review — to ensure that only well-tested, stakeholder-approved solutions reach production. No agent authorizes go-live, cutover execution, or production deployments; those are human decisions by the project sponsor, release manager, and (where engaged) the Microsoft FastTrack for Dynamics 365 team.

When to use

• A new Dynamics 365 change request (feature, configuration, integration, or data migration) must be assessed for impact before development or deployment.
• A solution is approaching the Prepare phase and a go-live readiness gate review is needed.
• UAT sign-off or go/no-go criteria must be structured and tracked.
• A cutover plan must be reviewed for completeness before a go-live window.
• A hypercare plan must be confirmed and a support owner identified before go-live.

When NOT to use

• The change is a minor hotfix that does not require a full Solution Blueprint Review — use the environment-to-production-release-protocol with expedited gates.
• The implementation is not a Dynamics 365 project — this protocol is specifically aligned to the Dynamics 365 Success by Design framework.
• The go-live has already occurred and the project is in the Operate phase — escalate post-go-live issues to the hypercare support owner.
• The matter involves a regulatory or contractual commitment that requires legal review before the change can proceed — escalate to legal counsel first.

Participating agents

• d365-success-by-design-governance-agent — primary: assesses Solution Blueprint Review readiness, go-live readiness checklist completion, and Success by Design gate compliance
• d365-data-migration-cutover-agent — secondary: assesses data migration plan completeness, cutover plan, mock go-live execution, and rollback readiness

Inputs required

• Change request description and scope (feature, configuration change, integration, or data migration)
• Current Success by Design phase (Discover, Initiate, Implement, Prepare, Operate)
• Solution Blueprint Review findings (if available)
• Target go-live date and cutover window
• Testing status (SIT, UAT, performance testing)
• Open issues list from prior reviews

Evidence required

• Solution Blueprint Review outcomes (risks, recommendations, open items)
• System integration testing (SIT) results
• User acceptance testing (UAT) results and sign-off status
• Performance testing results
• Data migration plan and mock cutover results
• Go-live readiness checklist completion status
• Production support plan and hypercare plan

Workflow

1. Intake and phase alignment — receive change request; confirm current Success by Design phase; confirm whether a Solution Blueprint Review has been completed.
2. Impact and fit-gap assessment — assess the functional and non-functional impact of the change against the approved solution design; identify fit-gap items (gaps between standard Dynamics 365 functionality and business requirements that require customization).
3. Solution Blueprint Review gate (if not yet completed) — confirm Solution Blueprint Review has been conducted; review findings and open risks; confirm that Implementation Reviews for critical areas (data model, security, integration, ALM, testing strategy) are scheduled or completed.
4. Testing gate: SIT and performance — confirm system integration testing and performance testing are complete; review results; flag any critical or blocking defects.
5. Testing gate: UAT sign-off — confirm UAT is complete and business stakeholders have signed off; flag any open UAT defects; confirm UAT sign-off authority has formal sign-off on record.
6. Cutover plan verification — confirm cutover plan is documented, includes task owners, durations, and dependencies; confirm mock go-live has been executed or is scheduled; confirm rollback criteria and rollback steps are defined.
7. Escalation gate: impact and fit-gap — if critical fit-gap items are unresolved or the solution design has material gaps, pause and escalate to the project sponsor and Dynamics 365 architect before proceeding.
8. Escalation gate: UAT sign-off — if UAT sign-off is not obtained or critical UAT defects are open, stop and escalate to the project sponsor; do not proceed to go/no-go without UAT sign-off.
9. Go-live readiness review — conduct or confirm completion of the Go-live Readiness Review (Success by Design mandatory review); assess go-live readiness against the checklist: solution acceptance, user training, performance, integrations, code management, configuration management, blocking issues, cutover plan, risk mitigation, and support plan.
10. Escalation gate: go/no-go decision — require explicit human go/no-go decision from project sponsor and release manager; record decision with timestamp and decision owner reference; do not initiate cutover without a confirmed Go decision.
11. Go-live and cutover execution — confirm production deployment and data migration cutover execution per the approved cutover plan; monitor go-live status; record each cutover task completion.
12. Escalation gate: rollback — if a blocking issue is detected during go-live that meets rollback criteria, stop and escalate to project sponsor and release manager for rollback decision; do not continue go-live over a rollback-trigger threshold without explicit authorization.
13. Hypercare — confirm hypercare period is active; confirm hypercare support owner and escalation path; schedule post-go-live review; track and resolve post-go-live issues.

Decision gates

Gate	Condition	Action
Impact and fit-gap	Critical fit-gap items unresolved or solution design has material gaps	Pause; escalate to project sponsor + Dynamics 365 architect
UAT sign-off	UAT not signed off or critical UAT defects open	Stop; escalate to project sponsor; do not proceed to go/no-go
Go/no-go	Human go/no-go decision not on record	Hold; do not initiate cutover; require decision from project sponsor + release manager
Rollback	Blocking issue during go-live meets rollback criteria	Stop go-live; escalate to project sponsor + release manager for rollback decision
Solution Blueprint Review	Solution Blueprint Review not completed	Flag; recommend completing before continuing; mandatory for complex implementations

Refusal triggers

• A request is made to proceed to go-live without UAT sign-off — refuse; UAT sign-off is mandatory.
• A request is made to execute cutover without a documented cutover plan and rollback criteria — refuse.
• A request is made to skip the Go-live Readiness Review for a complex implementation — refuse; escalate to Success by Design team.
• Credentials, service principal secrets, tenant IDs, or production data are requested to assess go-live readiness — refuse; work from sanitized change request, test results, and checklist signals only.
• A go/no-go Go decision is recorded without human authorization — refuse; human project sponsor sign-off is mandatory.

Handoff rules

• Every handoff carries: change request scope, current phase, gate status, open issues, test results summary, cutover plan status, go/no-go decision reference, rollback plan reference, hypercare plan, and a do-not-do list.
• No agent authorizes go-live, cutover execution, or production deployments. Human project sponsor and release manager own the go/no-go decision.
• Post-go-live, the primary agent confirms hypercare activation and hands off to the hypercare support owner.

KPIs

• Percentage of go-live readiness checklist items completed before the go/no-go gate
• Number of critical defects open at UAT sign-off gate
• Number of go-live rollbacks triggered
• Hypercare issue resolution time (first response and full resolution)

References

• Introduction to Success by Design — Dynamics 365
• Prepare to go live — Dynamics 365
• Go-live readiness workshops for Dynamics 365 projects
• Use the go-live checklist — Dynamics 365
• Manage changes during transition and handover — Dynamics 365