QE Advisory Forum (QAF) Purpose

This Planning Document was created to describe how Tech by Design will manage input to the design of the shared infrastructure solution, Fusion. This process will also inform how input is gathered throughout the subsequent implementation, as lessons learned will be documented and reflected through real-time improvements to the process.

The goal of the QAF approach is to ensure best practices developed by the Qualified Entities (QEs) are incorporated into the future-state Shared Infrastructure platform. QEs have built and optimized their systems over the last 10+ years, and have significant lessons learned that will add substantial value to Fusion.

How it Works

The QE Advisory Forum is in place to support decision making during the discovery and subsequent implementation of the Shared Infrastructure. The diagram below depicts a summary of the process:

QAF Process

Use Case Definition

During the discovery period, Discovery Sessions will be the primary origination point of Use Case Creation. Use Cases are written documents (Word/PDF) that contain key scoping information about each major function and capability of Fusion. As a result of the discovery sessions, technology vendors and Tech by design will document the envisioned functionality to be implemented including a high-level summary of capabilities, out of scope functionality, and implementation approach into each Use Case. A list of sample use cases is provided below:

Sample Use Cases

QE Feedback

Tech by Design will ensure that implementing QEs have access to all documentation related to the planning, design, and intended technical approach to for the Fusion implementation. In most cases, QE input should be provided proactively in regard to information available in established locations and tools. Although, within the discovery there will be two primary triggers where QEs will be especially requested to provide input.

• Use Case Draft Review: In the case that Tech by Design has what it feels to be a complete Use Case, QEs will be notified that a draft is available for review. Feedback will be aggregated using a dedicated GitHub “Discussions” section. Use Case documents will be linked and available to reviewers, although, QE team members are requested to add any comments/feedback in the GitHub discussion, providing reference to specific content sections of the Use Case Document through utilizing the corresponding section number(s) in question. The GitHub discussions section for Use Cases can be found here (Insert Link). QEs will have two (2) weeks to provide written feedback to the Use Case shared. If no feedback is received, the Use Case will be considered final. Feedback may be received after this date, but it is not guaranteed that it will be considered. This feedback will be considered depending on its criticality as well as the status of formal/contractual approvals.
• Ongoing Implementation Planning Meetings: Bi-weekly (2x weekly), Tech by Design and implementing QEs will meet to discuss ongoing outputs of discovery sessions, as well as input received to drafted Use Cases. Tech by Design will also bring forward unanswered questions, as well as information requests, necessary to inform decisions universally across the Fusion implementation effort.

Who is Involved?

Tech by Design- Members of the Tech by Design team will serve as the primary drivers of all meetings and work products related to the Fusion implementation effort. They will support the QE Advisory Forum process as described in this document, and support efforts outside its reach to ensure the success of the program.

Implementation Vendor- These teams will participate in discovery, design, and implementation related activities as needed, and as directed by Tech by Design. Additionally, they will attend Ongoing Implementation Planning Meetings as needed to engage and receive feedback from implementing QEs.

Implementation Planning Team- Chosen team members across all implementing QEs come together to represent the Implementation Planning Team. These team members will be engaged as the primary contacts for feedback requests, and for collaboration when additional QE specific information is needed. Where provided, Tech by Design will coordinate with designated project management team members from each QE in these scenarios as well.

QE SMEs- QEs have invaluable talent and knowledge assets within their teams. To reach these individuals, Implementation Planning Team members will engage QE SMEs as needed to provide feedback to documented Use Cases as well as provide input during Ongoing Implementation Planning Meetings. As much as possible, QE SME meeting attendance will be limited to one (1) person per QE (in addition to the Implementation Planning Team). Depending on topic/specialty area discussed, it is acceptable that the additionally invited QE team member changes from meeting to meeting. The limited attendance approach is intended to ensure right sized team participation for productive meeting facilitation, decision making, and support equitable QE representation.

Other Planning Assets, and Future Considerations

In addition to documentation regarding Use Cases, other information will be transparently available to implementing QE teams. Two primary examples of planned documentation are below:

• Requirements: As an extension of the requirements gathered during the evaluation and selection phases of the Fusion implementation, requirements will be managed throughout deployment and in perpetuity. These requirements will be mapped to Use Cases for traceability in implementation and for reuse as necessary.
• Decisions: Key conclusions will be reached throughout the implementation based on discovery session outcomes, QE input, and other factors. These decisions will be recorded within a decision register. QEs will have the opportunity to comment on decisions for additional consideration.

The pattern for feedback and reaching conclusions throughout planning, implementation, and production use of the Fusion system will follow this established process, unless lessons learned and process improvements inform otherwise. Enhancement requests are additional planning assets to be considered in future plans and process updates.

QAF Future State

Tech by Design believes there is a long-term role for the QE Advisory Forum framework. We have attempted, in this first pass, to limit definitions to only those elements we believe are critical to the success of the shared infrastructure deployment. Through this first project, we expect to learn and refine the QAF Framework. Ultimately, we intend for Tech by Design to only own two parts of the QAF Framework: 1) the definition and mechanisms for how Tech by Design will receive and respond to requests, feedback, and insights from the QAFs, and 2) an initial charter describing rules for the definition, creation and membership of the QAFs.

Tech by Design looks to these groups to become the filter and refinement process for feedback and recommendations from the QE community at large but believes it can serve a far greater role to broader QE community. While the current QAF refers to the Implementation Planning Team and the various SMEs brought in based on Use Case definition, the anticipated future state will leverage various advisory committees and groups formed to support ongoing system feedback as the QAFs. The following are a few examples of how Tech by Design has imagined the QAF framework being used.

Subject Matter Expertise

• “Evaluation & Feedback” - As new tools, processes, best practices are identified and/formulated the QAFs can be called upon to provide expert feedback, risk identification, and valuable insights into the expected efficacy/impact.
• “Solutioning Support” - When multiple tenable solutions may be available, or a solution is not readily apparent then the expertise within a QAF can be called upon to provide support in the development of solutions, the reframing of the problem, and the evaluation of the impact/feasibility of solution options.

Shared Infrastructure Roadmap

• “Feature Request Filtering” - Not every idea is a good idea. Ensuring that feature requests are well vetted and worthwhile amongst the QE community is critical to preventing a “bloated” backlog of meagerly beneficial features.
• “Feature Request Refinements” - Even good ideas can be made better. We expect that the QAFs will have a honing effect on feature requests to ensure good ideas become the best possible idea the group has to offer.
• “Feature Recommendations” - The QAFs will formalize and submit requests to Tech by Design through Tech by Design’s future product development process.

Support Network

• “Community Callout” - QE’s looking for support will be able to leverage the collective QE Advisory Forum community to ask questions, present problems, seek solutions from other users utilizing the same tools.
• “Phone a Friend” - QE’s will now have a directory of experts to engage when they’re “stuck.” This network exists informally today but formalizing it around shared infrastructure will remove the much of the ‘hunting and pecking’ for an expert that understands the specific problem at hand.

The above are not meant to be an expansive list of how the QAFs could be utilized. Their effectiveness will ultimately be determined by the level of engagement that QE’s find beneficial. Meeting frequency, membership, discussion topics, will largely be at the discretion of the Centers of Excellence and their QE representatives.