Who changed the price rule?
In March, a developer changed the rule that sets delivery prices. In June, customers began to complain. Prices were wrong.
The manager asks: who changed it? Why? Who approved it? Can we go back?
Nobody wrote anything down. The change took one hour to make and three weeks to understand.
Key words
| Word | What it means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Documentation | Written records about what was done and why. | A change record |
| Requirement | Something a system or change must do. | Customers must be able to pay by card |
| Traceability | Being able to follow a change back to its reason and its owner. | This change came from request 14 |
| Accountability | Being responsible for a decision and able to explain it. | The manager who approved it |
| Refresher training | A short course that reminds people how to do something. | A yearly reminder on security |
| Review | A look back to see how well something went. | A meeting after a change |
| Version control | Software that records every change to files, who made it and why. | A tool that keeps every version of a file |
| Branch | A separate line of work, so a change can be tried safely. | A branch for trying a new price rule |
| Commit | A saved step in the history, with a message. | Add change note |
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Quick check: the price rule
Have a go
Quick check: the price rule
3 questionsYour answers are marked here and are not kept. A college account keeps every student’s marks.
Document the change
Write down the change as it happens. The record should show five things.
Who is responsible and accountable. (Responsible means doing the work. Accountable means having to answer for it.) What the change is and its traceability to a request. Every decision made. Up-to-date information as plans change. And the training manuals for users.
Keep all of it, so that it can be found years later.
What to record
| Record | What it holds | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Requirement traceability | Which request each change answers. Who is responsible and who is accountable | You can show why it was done and who owns it |
| Up-to-date information | The plan, the test results and the dates, kept current | Everyone works from the latest facts |
| A log of decisions | Every yes and no, with the date and the reason | Nobody has to guess what was agreed |
| Kept change documents | The forms and reports, kept for as long as the organisation needs them | Proof when somebody checks the work |
| User training manuals | Step-by-step guides for people who use the new system | Users learn the right way |
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Training needs and checking progress
Users need to learn the new system. Work out the training needed. There are new training needs for new skills. There are also refresher courses for skills people already have but may forget.
Then watch how the change is going. A post-progress review is a look back after the change: what worked, what did not, what to do next.
Training and review
| What | When | Example |
|---|---|---|
| New training | Before or at the start of the change | A class on the new ordering screen |
| Refresher training | After some months, or after updates | A short video each year on data safety |
| Post-progress review | When a stage or the whole change ends | A meeting: Did we meet the SMARTER goals? What next? |
The cells students fill in are left blank in this preview.
Scenario: the new till
Have a go
Scenario: the new till
3 questionsYour answers are marked here and are not kept. A college account keeps every student’s marks.