ActiveDraftQuality

Definition of Ready

The readiness bar a piece of work must clear before development starts.

StatusActive

MaturityDraft

DifficultyBeginner

Versionv0.1.0

Reading Time5 min

Last Updated2026-07-01

#gate#readiness#planning

Overview

Definition of Ready is the checklist QA evaluates before development begins on a feature or project. It confirms that requirements, designs, environments, infrastructure, testing strategy, and cross-team dependencies are all in place — so work starts on solid foundations instead of shifting sand.

Why This Exists

Most projects that slip do so before a line of code is written: unclear acceptance criteria, a missing environment, or an unresolved dependency surfaces mid-development and cascades into delay. A shared readiness bar surfaces those gaps up front, when they are cheap to fix.