Rescuing Troubled SAP Programs: Quality Signals and Recovery

Keep this: job aid

Program rescue playbook

• Watch leading indicators: entry criteria, defect arrival vs closure, defect age, reopen rate, coverage, mock reconciliation.
• Compare reported status with measured evidence; act on watermelons immediately.
• Commission an independent assessment with terms of reference and a two-to-three week time box.
• Prefer tool data, walkthroughs and re-execution; protect the messengers.
• Re-baseline date, scope and resources; never lower quality criteria to fit a plan.
• Re-plan from measured rates with visible contingency; reset gates with measurable criteria.
• Restore flow: daily decisive triage, WIP limits, fixed transport slots, weekly root-cause review.
• Report measured trends and forecasts from one source of truth; keep a commitments log.
• Go/no-go on pre-agreed criteria, a linked evidence pack and residual risks accepted by named owners.
• Keep the recovery habits after go-live and run a cause-focused lessons review.