Going live
Ask me before you go live.
Going live feels like one technical moment. In practice it is a series of choices about support, monitoring, payments, security, backups and rollback that you can take cheaply a few weeks before launch, or fix expensively a few weeks after. A short check picks up the risks that can do the most damage in the first weeks.
Check this before you commit
What I check first.
- 01
Is there basic logging and alerting on critical errors?
- 02
Has the backup and restore process ever been tested?
- 03
Do the four key payment flows work, success, failure, recurring drop, refund?
- 04
Who responds to customer questions, on which channel, within what time?
- 05
Is there a workable rollback plan if the release turns out to be broken?
Common patterns
What I see happen most often.
- Logging and monitoring are deferred until something breaks.
- The rollback plan lives in someone's head, not on paper.
- One payment flow is tested in production; the other three are not.
- A blank page or stack trace meets the first customer.
What the conversation produces
What you leave with.
- 01
A short launch checklist of what has to be ready and what can wait.
- 02
A rollback plan executable in ten minutes.
- 03
An agreement on customer communication when something breaks.
Further reading
Articles on this challenge.
- 6 min read
What I Check Before a Startup Goes Live
Going live is not just a technical moment. The checks I run on support, monitoring, payments, security, backups and rollback before the first customer shows up.
- 7 min read
How One Short Conversation Can Save Weeks of Development
The right question, asked before implementation, can remove more work than a faster development team.
- 7 min read
You Probably Do Not Need Kubernetes
Kubernetes solves operational problems most startups do not have yet. What it costs, when it is too early, and which alternatives fit better.
Ready to talk?
Tell me what you’re struggling with.
Development is taking too long. Costs are rising. You’re unsure about a choice. Or your startup simply feels stuck. Let’s figure out what is really going on.