Our vendor uses waterfall, but our internal team uses agile. What should we agree?
Supplier-method interfaceAgree deliverables, interfaces, decision points, and change responsibilities at the boundary. Different internal methods are manageable when shared commitments and evidence are explicit.
What to do now
- Map the vendor and internal delivery interfaces
- Agree acceptance and input dates
- Set regular joint demonstrations or tests
- Manage changes through the agreed commercial route
When to escalate
Escalate when
The contract and actual collaboration expectations conflict materially.
Who decides
The delivery owner and relevant governance authority
Example
A vendor delivers a stable interface increment that the internal team tests before the next contractual milestone.
Mistake to avoid
Assuming the vendor will absorb unlimited backlog changes.
Prevent a repeat
Check whether governance decisions use real delivery evidence rather than forcing incompatible reporting rituals.
Suggested ApprovedFlow setup
- Projects
- Tasks
- Documents
- Approvals
Keep decision milestones and iterative task work connected, with explicit evidence required at each approved gate. See the platform
Related cases
- The PMO asks for earned value on an evolving backlog. What should we consider?Measurement-method mismatch
- How do we decide whether a hybrid approach is actually helping?Unexamined method value
- How do we manage multiple vendors on one project?Supplier interface ambiguity
- The vendor requests permanent full access for troubleshooting. Should we agree?Excessive support privileges