# Kickoff Questionnaire

Axdale. Software engineering by Michael Lip, Warsaw, Poland (CET).

Version 1.0. 23 October 2026. Website https://www.axdale.com. Code record https://github.com/theluckystrike.

This questionnaire replaces a kickoff call. Your answers give me what a call would give me, in a form your team can keep. Answer in the reply, in a document or in an issue in your tracker. Short answers are fine.

Each question has a default in brackets. If the default is right, write "default". Questions marked R are required before day 1. The others can wait until day 2.

## Context helps me most

The more context you can share, the better and faster the work. I work in writing, so your documents, tickets and notes do the job a meeting would do, and they let me start from your real system instead of my guesses. Everything below is optional. Share what is easy, and skip what is sensitive or not ready.

| What to share | Why it helps |
|---|---|
| Repository access, or the files that matter most | I read the code before I plan, so the plan fits how your system works today. |
| Architecture notes, diagrams or a README for new hires | I learn the boundaries and naming your team already uses. |
| Open tickets, the backlog and any bug reports | I see what your users and your team have already reported. |
| Past incidents, postmortems or error logs (redacted is fine) | I find the failure patterns that matter most to you. |
| Examples of good and bad output, for agent or LLM work | I turn them into the first evaluation cases, so you and I measure the same thing. |
| Limits and rules, such as data you cannot share, compliance needs or banned tools | I design around them from day 1. |
| A short screen recording you make of the problem, if that is quicker for you than writing | I watch it on my own time and reply in writing. |

If something is unclear, I ask in writing and keep my questions short and grouped, so they take you little time to answer.

## A. The goal

| No. | Question | Default | Your answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 R | What must be true at the end of week 1 for you to count it a success? | (the acceptance criteria in the Order Form) | ____ |
| A2 R | Who uses the change first, and what do they do with it? | (internal staff on staging) | ____ |
| A3 | Which number would show it worked, such as error rate, latency, cost per request or pass rate on an evaluation set? | (pass rate on an evaluation set I build in week 1) | ____ |
| A4 | Is there a date that matters, such as a launch, a customer promise or a board review? | (no fixed date) | ____ |
| A5 | What is the size of the whole job after week 1? | (2 to 4 paid weeks, as in the plan) | ____ |

## B. The system

| No. | Question | Default | Your answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| B1 R | Which repositories are in scope, and which branch do I start from? | (the repositories in the Order Form, from main) | ____ |
| B2 R | How do I run the project locally? Link the README or the setup script. | (the README in the repository) | ____ |
| B3 | Which environment can I deploy previews to? | (none, I test locally and in CI) | ____ |
| B4 | How does CI run, and which checks must pass before review? | (all required checks on the pull request) | ____ |
| B5 | Which AI models and providers does the product use today, and on which account? | (none in production yet) | ____ |
| B6 | Where are the logs, traces and errors I may read? | (none needed in week 1) | ____ |
| B7 | Which parts of the code are fragile or owned by another team? | (none) | ____ |

## C. Limits and rules

| No. | Question | Default | Your answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| C1 R | Which systems, data or files must I not touch? | (production, customer data, billing) | ____ |
| C2 R | Which AI providers may see your code? This repeats section 5 of the Order Form. | (as ticked in the Order Form) | ____ |
| C3 | Do you have a security policy, a coding standard or a style guide I must follow? | (I follow my Security and Access Policy and your linters) | ____ |
| C4 | Are there legal or compliance rules, such as GDPR, HIPAA, SOC 2 controls or data residency? | (none beyond GDPR basics) | ____ |
| C5 | May I add new dependencies? Is there a license rule? | (yes, permissive licenses only, each listed in the pull request) | ____ |
| C6 | Do you need a mutual NDA or a data processing agreement? | (no) | ____ |

## D. People and approvals

| No. | Question | Default | Your answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| D1 R | Who is the Decision Maker who approves the plan, paid weeks and sign-off? | (the person named in the Order Form) | ____ |
| D2 R | Who reviews pull requests, and in what time? | (the Decision Maker, within 1 Working Day) | ____ |
| D3 | Who grants and removes access? | (the technical contact in the Order Form) | ____ |
| D4 | Who should get the daily update? | (the Decision Maker and the reviewer) | ____ |
| D5 | Who is the contact if a security issue appears? | (the Decision Maker) | ____ |

## E. Working in writing

| No. | Question | Default | Your answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| E1 | Where do you want the daily update, email or a tracker comment? | (email) | ____ |
| E2 | Which tracker do you use, and which project or label is mine? | (GitHub Issues in the main repository) | ____ |
| E3 | May I merge my own pull requests after approval? | (no, you merge) | ____ |
| E4 | Which time zone is your team in, and which hours are you online? | (US Eastern, 09:00 to 17:00) | ____ |
| E5 | Are there public holidays or freezes in your company during the week? | (none) | ____ |

## F. History and risk

| No. | Question | Default | Your answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| F1 | What have you tried already, and what happened? | (nothing yet) | ____ |
| F2 | Has this part of the system had incidents? Link the write-ups. | (none) | ____ |
| F3 | What is the worst outcome you want me to avoid? | (a regression in production) | ____ |
| F4 | What would make you stop after week 1? | (criteria not met) | ____ |

## G. Procurement

| No. | Question | Default | Your answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| G1 | Do you need a supplier form, a vendor security questionnaire or a tax form from me? | (no) | ____ |
| G2 | Which legal entity pays the invoices, and to which email do invoices go? | (the Client in the Order Form, to the Decision Maker) | ____ |
| G3 | Do you need a purchase order number on invoices? | (no) | ____ |

## What I do with your answers

I read them on the day they arrive. I send back one grouped message with any follow-up questions, each with a default. I add the answers to the written plan, so the plan and the answers stay in one place. Nothing in this questionnaire changes the acceptance criteria unless your Decision Maker agrees in writing.

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Axdale. Michael Lip, independent engineer, Warsaw, Poland (CET). michael@axdale.com. https://www.axdale.com. Code record https://github.com/theluckystrike.