Question

Your project depends on a shared deliverable that a partner organization has agreed to co-develop. During early discussions, both sides express general enthusiasm but never document specifics about quality standards, delivery dates, or who owns integration testing. Three weeks in, the partner delivers an incomplete component and claims it was never their responsibility. What should the project manager have done to prevent this situation?

Accepted Answer

Established a documented working agreement defining roles, acceptance criteria, and delivery commitments before work began

Answer

Escalated to the sponsor immediately when the partner was first assigned to co-develop the deliverable

Answer

Assigned one of their own team members to shadow the partner and take over the work if quality slipped

Answer

Added the partner's tasks to the project schedule with buffer time to absorb any late deliveries