Validate insights

Validating Insights Through Cross-Functional Reviews
Validating insights is an important step in ensuring that the results of your analysis are accurate, actionable, and align with business goals. Reviewing analysis results and responses with cross-functional teams and business owners helps establish a common understanding, uncover additional impacts, and refine responses. By involving multiple perspectives, teams can develop well-rounded solutions that address both technical and business needs.

Review Insights with Cross-Functional Teams

Review analysis results with cross-functional teams, including technical teams, product owners, operations, and business stakeholders. Cross-functional reviews provide a comprehensive perspective, allowing the organization to:

• Establish a Common Understanding: Ensure all parties understand the analysis results, the contributing factors, and the potential impacts on both the technical and business sides of the workload.
• Identify Additional Impacts: Cross-functional teams often bring different viewpoints that help identify additional impacts not initially considered. This could include customer experience, operational risks, or opportunities for improvement that may have been overlooked.
• Ensure Alignment: Make sure that the insights and responses align with overall business objectives. Engaging business owners helps ensure that technical decisions also support broader strategic goals.

Identify Potential Courses of Action

Use insights gained from the review to determine potential courses of action. Teams can collaborate to:

• Identify Mitigation Strategies: Discuss possible mitigation strategies to address identified risks, weaknesses, or inefficiencies.
• Determine Priority Actions: Work together to prioritize actions based on their impact and alignment with business objectives. Actions with the highest potential to improve customer experience, reduce risk, or enhance performance should receive priority.
• Evaluate Feasibility: Discuss the feasibility of each potential response, considering technical complexity, resource requirements, and potential risks.

Adjust Responses Based on Feedback

Adjust responses based on feedback from cross-functional reviews. Feedback from different teams helps refine solutions and ensures that proposed actions address all relevant aspects of the workload. This collaborative approach results in more effective and well-rounded responses:

• Technical Adjustments: Technical teams may suggest adjustments to improve the feasibility or performance of a solution.
• Business Considerations: Business owners may provide input on how proposed changes align with customer expectations, financial constraints, or compliance requirements.

Foster Open Communication and Collaboration

Foster open communication and encourage team members to share their insights and perspectives freely. Effective reviews require a culture of collaboration, where different viewpoints are valued, and all stakeholders feel comfortable contributing. This approach helps ensure that the final course of action considers all aspects of the workload.

Document Agreed Courses of Action

Document the agreed courses of action from the review sessions to provide a clear reference for teams moving forward. Documentation should include:

• Summary of Insights: A summary of the analysis results and the insights gained during the review.
• Proposed Actions and Owners: A detailed list of the agreed actions, including the individuals or teams responsible for each.
• Adjustments and Rationale: Any adjustments made to the initial response, along with the rationale for those changes, to maintain transparency and alignment.

Supporting Questions

• How are analysis results validated with cross-functional teams to ensure accuracy and alignment with business goals?
• What process is used to incorporate feedback from business owners and other stakeholders into responses?
• How are potential courses of action determined and prioritized during cross-functional reviews?

Roles and Responsibilities

Operations Manager
Responsibilities:

• Lead cross-functional review sessions, ensuring that insights are discussed collaboratively and potential impacts are fully considered.
• Document the outcomes of the review and ensure that action items are clearly assigned to relevant teams or individuals.

Business Owner
Responsibilities:

• Provide input on how analysis results and proposed actions align with business objectives and customer needs.
• Ensure that business priorities are considered when evaluating potential actions, and that responses align with overall business strategy.

Subject Matter Expert (SME)
Responsibilities:

• Contribute technical expertise during cross-functional reviews to help evaluate the feasibility of proposed actions.
• Suggest adjustments to technical solutions as needed to ensure they are effective and address relevant workload challenges.

Artifacts

• Cross-Functional Review Report: A report documenting the insights discussed during cross-functional reviews, including identified impacts, proposed actions, and any adjustments made.
• Action Plan with Assignments: A plan detailing the actions agreed upon during the review, including the teams or individuals responsible for executing each action and target timelines.
• Adjustments Log: A log of adjustments made to initial responses, including the rationale for those changes and how they improve alignment with technical and business goals.

Relevant AWS Tools

Collaboration Tools

• Amazon Chime: Facilitates virtual review meetings, allowing cross-functional teams and business owners to collaborate in real time and discuss insights.
• AWS Systems Manager OpsCenter: Aggregates operational data, providing a central repository of insights that can be used during cross-functional reviews to validate findings.

Monitoring and Insights Tools

• Amazon CloudWatch: Collects metrics that provide insights into workload performance, helping cross-functional teams validate the results of the analysis.
• AWS QuickSight: Visualizes analysis results to help communicate findings during review meetings, ensuring all stakeholders have a clear understanding of the insights.

Documentation Tools

• Amazon WorkDocs: Stores review reports, action plans, and adjustments logs, providing a central location for documentation that is accessible to all stakeholders.
• AWS Systems Manager Runbook: Documents agreed-upon procedures for implementing responses and adjustments, ensuring that the processes are well-documented and easily accessible.