Quality Gatekeeper: Never Ship Until It's Overwhelmingly Excellent
AI quality gatekeeper that demands overwhelming proof of excellence before client delivery. Defaults to "NEEDS REVISION" unless work demonstrably exceeds standards. Protects agency reputation and client success through evidence-based certification—the final checkpoint before go-live.
The Problem: Premature Launches Destroy Trust & Reputation
Launching Too Early Kills Trust
You told the client "site's ready!" Two hours after launch, broken forms on mobile. Images not loading on Safari. Contact form sends nothing. Client gets 12 angry calls. Trust destroyed.
Result: One premature launch = damaged reputation, refund requests, lost referrals. All preventable with proper quality gates.
No Quality Standards = No Consistency
One developer ships at 85% complete. Another won't launch until 99%. No standard checklist. No objective criteria. Quality varies wildly project to project.
Result: Inconsistent client experience. Some launches perfect, others disasters. Clients don't know what to expect.
Post-Launch Firefighting Costs 10x More
Site goes live with accessibility violations, performance issues, broken mobile experience. Spend 40 hours fixing problems that should have been caught pre-launch.
Result: Emergency fixes cost 10x more than pre-launch QA. Client frustrated. Team stressed. Profit margin destroyed.
The Fix: Quality Gatekeeper is the final checkpoint before every launch. Demands overwhelming evidence of excellence across performance, functionality, accessibility, and user experience. Default answer is "NEEDS REVISION" until proven otherwise.
What Quality Gatekeeper Does
Evidence-Based Certification
Requires hard data proving quality. Not opinions, not "looks good to me." Performance scores, test results, accessibility audits, cross-browser validation—all must meet or exceed thresholds.
Performance Validation (95%+ Required)
PageSpeed scores must hit 95+ mobile, 90+ desktop. Core Web Vitals all "Good." LCP under 2.5s, INP under 200ms, CLS under 0.1. No exceptions. Performance Scout data required as proof.
Functionality Testing Verification
All critical user paths tested and passing. Forms submit correctly. Navigation works. CTA buttons functional. E2E tests from QA Engineer must show 100% pass rate.
Accessibility Compliance Check
WCAG 2.1 Level AA compliance required. Zero critical violations. Screen reader tested. Keyboard navigation functional. Color contrast passing. axe-core audit clean.
Cross-Browser & Device Validation
Tested on Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge. Mobile and desktop. iOS Safari and Chrome Android verified. Screenshots or test results required as proof.
Security & Best Practices
SSL enabled. Forms sanitized. No security vulnerabilities. Lighthouse best practices score >90. Security headers configured. No exposed credentials or API keys.
Content Quality Assurance
All images have alt text. No placeholder content ("Lorem ipsum"). Spell-check passed. Meta descriptions optimized. No broken links. Content ready for real users.
Integration & Third-Party Validation
CRM integration tested and working. Analytics tracking verified. Forms sending to correct email/CRM. Payment processing functional (if applicable). All third-party services connected.
Mobile Experience Verification
Touch targets 48x48px minimum. Text readable without zoom. No horizontal scroll. Forms usable on mobile. Mobile-first experience validated, not just responsive layout.
SEO Readiness Check
Meta tags optimized. Sitemap generated. Robots.txt configured. Canonical URLs set. Structured data implemented. Google Search Console verified. Ready for indexing.
Backup & Rollback Plan
Backup created before launch. Rollback plan documented. DNS settings documented. Downtime mitigation planned. Recovery procedures tested.
Client Acceptance Criteria
All client-specified requirements met. Signed off on design. Approved content. Training completed. Documentation delivered. Client ready to launch.
How Quality Gatekeeper Works
Comprehensive quality validation before launch approval
1. Pre-Launch Audit Request
Team requests go-live approval. Quality Gatekeeper is triggered. Begins comprehensive audit across all quality dimensions. Default status: NEEDS REVISION until proven ready.
2. Performance Validation
Runs Performance Scout on all critical pages. Validates 95+ mobile performance score. Checks Core Web Vitals all "Good." No performance regressions from baseline allowed.
3. Functionality Testing Review
Reviews QA Engineer test results. Validates 100% test pass rate on critical paths. Manually spot-checks key user flows. Tests forms, CTAs, navigation, and core features.
4. Accessibility Compliance Audit
Runs axe-core accessibility scan. Tests with screen reader spot-checks. Validates keyboard navigation. Checks color contrast ratios. Reviews semantic HTML structure.
5. Cross-Browser & Device Testing
Validates functionality on Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge. Tests mobile experience on iOS Safari and Chrome Android. Checks responsive layout at key breakpoints. Validates touch interactions.
6. Security & Best Practices Check
Validates SSL certificate active. Checks Lighthouse best practices score >90. Reviews security headers. Scans for exposed credentials. Validates form sanitization and CSRF protection.
7. Integration & Content Validation
Tests CRM integration end-to-end. Validates analytics tracking firing. Checks all images have alt text. Scans for placeholder content. Tests third-party service connections.
8. Final Go/No-Go Decision
Aggregates all validation results. Calculates overall quality score. Issues verdict: APPROVED FOR LAUNCH (95%+ quality) or NEEDS REVISION (specific issues listed). No gray area.
Quality Certification Criteria
APPROVED FOR LAUNCH
Site meets ALL criteria below. Quality Gatekeeper grants launch approval. Team can deploy with confidence.
NEEDS REVISION
Site fails one or more critical criteria. Launch BLOCKED until issues resolved. Specific blockers identified below.
Real Results: HVAC Company Launch
Before Quality Gatekeeper
| Metric | No Quality Gate |
|---|---|
| Launch quality consistency | Highly variable (60-90%) |
| Post-launch issues/month | 8-12 critical issues |
| Emergency fixes required | 65% of launches |
| Client satisfaction | 73% (inconsistent) |
| Time to fix post-launch issues | 40 hours avg |
| Reputation/referral impact | Negative (3.8/5 reviews) |
After Quality Gatekeeper (6 Months)
| Metric | With Quality Gate | Improvement |
|---|---|---|
| Launch quality consistency | 95%+ every launch | Consistent excellence |
| Post-launch issues/month | 0.5 average (1 every 2 months) | -94% (18x reduction) |
| Emergency fixes required | 5% of launches | -92% |
| Client satisfaction | 100% (last 12 launches) | +27% |
| Time to fix post-launch issues | 2 hours (rare) | -95% |
| Reputation/referral impact | Positive (4.9/5 reviews) | +29% |
What Changed:
- Implemented Quality Gatekeeper as mandatory final checkpoint on all launches
- Blocked 3 launches in first month that would have caused post-launch issues
- Established objective quality criteria (95%+ threshold) instead of subjective "looks good"
- Required evidence-based certification: performance data, test results, accessibility audits
- Caught mobile Safari form bug, accessibility violations, and CRM integration issues pre-launch
- Shifted culture from "ship fast" to "ship when it's overwhelmingly excellent"
Business Impact: Zero premature launches = 100% client satisfaction = 4.9/5 reviews = 3x more referrals = sustainable growth without reputation damage.
Technical Specifications
Powered by Claude Opus for comprehensive quality assessment
AI Model
Quality Thresholds
Validation Dimensions
Data Sources
Related Agents & Workflows
Quality Assurance Team Agents
Stop Shipping Mediocre Work. Ship Overwhelming Excellence.
Let's implement Quality Gatekeeper as your final checkpoint—evidence-based certification that protects your reputation and client success.
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