Phase VI: Launch and Post-Launch

Last Updated: November 20, 2024

PLEASE NOTE This guide recently transferred ownership and is now maintained by the Veteran Facing Forms team. We’re working through some revisions and encourage you to submit an issue ticket if you have feedback about how we can improve this guide!

🚀 Let’s Launch (and Post-Launch)

The goal of this phase is to get your digitized form off the launch pad, test the release plan, and get it live to Veterans and other relevant users. This phase also sees you ensure the form is accessible and findable out in the Real World.

⭐ Steps

Step 1: Request an accessibility audit from the VA Section 508 Office

• Your team will need a 508 Office contact. If you do not have one, contact the Product Support Team.

• All VFS teams are required to submit a VA 508 Office Audit Request, whether accessibility issues were found during the Collaboration Cycle Staging Review or not.

• This will consist of an Audit Request and perhaps a Document Review.

• The Accessibility Audit is out of scope for Platform.

• It is recommended to do this before Launch, but check with the Governance Team.

• Follow the existing guidance to request support from the VA Section 508 Office.

• Learn about the Office’s Accessibility Rubric.

Step 2: Work with stakeholders to verify form made it to the appropriate management system

The process here may vary depending on the form and the stakeholders, but these will always include:

• VA form owner.

• Benefits Automation team.

Step 3: Create Flipper widget

• This widget helps roll out your form incrementally for testing.

• Work with CAIA for content and naming of the widget.

Step 4: Release testing and go/no-go plan

• Using the Flipper widget, incrementally release the digitized form.

• Let a few forms go through to Production.

• Get UUID from Datadog.

• Turn off the form to 0% .

• Get packet ID.

• Verify everything looks good in production and it successfully passes through automation and to VBMS.

• Verify with Stakeholders that it all looks ok.

• Turn form back on to 25%.

• Monitor form in Datadog (Datadog access required to view this link) to check that they perform.

• If all looks ok, turn form on at 50%.

• Check in with Stakeholders ok to turn on to 100%.

• Turn form on to 100%.

Step 5: Send out notices that form is live

• First, ensure the form is on the Find a Form page.

• The people to notify may include: Contact Center, #victories, OCTO, Field Operations, Automation, Central Mail.

Step 6: Get sign-off from stakeholders

• Collect the information from the above (that the form data works properly, that the form is on Find a Form).

• If cleared, turn form on to 100%.

Step 7: Request Datadog access for your team’s developers

This will help your team be ready for Phase VII: Monitoring. Follow guidance here.

Step 8: Request a KPI Dashboard in Domo

• This will help your team be ready for Phase VII: Monitoring.

• These dashboards are standardized for forms, so your team will not have to ideate nor implement this

• Request access to Domo.

• Fill out a KPI Dashboard Template (see guidance here).

• Do this about a month before you plan to have the dashboard go live.

Step 9: Set up submission notifications

• After your form launches you should set up notification emails in VA Notify for failed submissions, submission in progress, and received submissions. 

• Follow the guidance as established in the design system pattern “Help users to stay informed of their form submission status”.

🔮 Continue to the final phase →

Help and feedback

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• Submit new Platform Website content.

• Get help from the Platform Support Team in Slack.

• Submit a feature idea to the Platform.