Proof planning
8 min read
Updated 2026-05-18
A Software Delivery Evidence Checklist
What clients and facilitators should attach to a milestone so software delivery can be reviewed, audited, approved, or disputed with less guesswork.
Key takeaways
- check_circleEvidence should be planned before delivery, not improvised after a dispute.
- check_circleDifferent proof types belong to different owners: facilitator-owned, buyer-owned, shared handoff, or manual review.
- check_circleThe strongest evidence is inspectable: live URLs, repositories, logs, screenshots, artifacts, and acceptance notes.
Why proof planning matters
Software delivery is hard to verify from a status update alone. A message that says a feature is complete does not show whether the buyer can test it, whether the code is accessible, or whether production handoff is safe.
A delivery evidence checklist makes proof expectations visible before the milestone starts. That protects buyers from vague submissions and protects facilitators from surprise approval standards.
Evidence clients can ask for
The right proof depends on the milestone, but most software work benefits from a few repeatable evidence categories.
- task_altLive preview or staging URL for buyer-visible flows.
- task_altRepository, pull request, commit, or source archive for code review and ownership.
- task_altDeployment logs, service health checks, or worker status for backend delivery.
- task_altDatabase migration notes, schema snapshots, rollback notes, or RLS checklists where data work is involved.
- task_altScreenshots, recordings, documents, or acceptance notes when direct provider checks are not available.
- task_altHandoff instructions covering credentials, environments, release steps, and ongoing ownership.
Evidence ownership lanes
Not every proof item belongs to the facilitator. Some evidence requires buyer accounts, production access, domain control, sample data, or business approval. Treating ownership explicitly prevents stalled reviews.
- task_altFacilitator-owned: implementation proof, preview links, repository work, service logs, delivery notes.
- task_altBuyer-owned: domains, production credentials, account access, datasets, acceptance signoff.
- task_altShared handoff: release notes, credentials transfer, environment setup, operating instructions.
- task_altManual evidence: screenshots, recordings, documents, and notes when integrations cannot verify automatically.
How BeUntethered uses evidence
BeUntethered maps evidence needs during scope and proposal review, then keeps submitted proof attached to the milestone record. AI-assisted checks can compare evidence against the locked scope, but the buyer still makes the release decision.