Accountability Built In
SLAs & Governance
for Managed Outsourcing
Clear commitments. Transparent reporting. Defined escalation paths. We don't just promise accountability—we build it into every engagement with measurable SLAs and structured governance.
Accountability Shouldn't Be an Afterthought
Traditional outsourcing fails because accountability is vague. “We'll do our best” isn't a commitment. Salt's managed outsourcing includes clear SLAs, structured governance, and transparent reporting from day one—not buried in contract appendices no one reads.
Our Commitments
Core SLA Categories
We make specific, measurable commitments across four key areas. These aren't aspirational—they're how we operate.
Response Time
How quickly we acknowledge and respond to issues
Team Availability
Guaranteed team presence and overlap
Quality Metrics
Standards we hold ourselves to
Delivery Predictability
Commitments we make and keep
Note: These are baseline commitments. Specific SLAs are customized during engagement setup based on your requirements and context.
Structured Oversight
Governance Framework
Regular touchpoints at every level ensure alignment, catch issues early, and drive continuous improvement.
Daily Operations
- Async standup updates
- Slack availability during overlap
- Blocker escalation
- Progress visibility in dashboard
Weekly Sync
- Sprint demo & review
- Next sprint planning
- Risk & blocker discussion
- Metrics review
Monthly Review
- SLA performance report
- Velocity & quality trends
- Team health check
- Process improvement actions
Quarterly Business Review
- Strategic alignment check
- Roadmap planning
- Team composition review
- Contract & terms review
Clear Paths
Escalation Matrix
Know exactly who to contact and when. No ambiguity, no runaround, no waiting for someone to take ownership.
| Level | Contact | Response Time | When to Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Pod Lead | Same day | Daily blockers, technical questions, minor scope clarifications |
| Level 2 | Account Manager | 4 hours | Resource concerns, timeline risks, quality issues, communication gaps |
| Level 3 | Delivery Director | 2 hours | SLA breaches, team changes, major scope changes, contract issues |
| Level 4 | Executive Sponsor | 1 hour | Critical escalations, relationship issues, strategic concerns |
Full Visibility
Reporting & Transparency
You should never have to ask 'what's going on?' Information flows to you automatically.
Real-time Dashboard
Live visibility into sprint progress, velocity, and blockers. No waiting for status updates.
DORA Metrics
Deployment frequency, lead time, change failure rate, and recovery time—tracked and shared.
Weekly Reports
Automated reports on completed work, upcoming priorities, and any risks or blockers.
Full Transparency
Access to project boards, repositories, CI/CD pipelines, and all documentation.
The Salt Difference
Beyond Standard SLAs
SLAs are just the baseline. Here's what makes our approach to accountability different.
Partnership, Not Vendor
We succeed when you succeed. Our SLAs are designed to align incentives, not create adversarial relationships.
Continuous Improvement
Retrospectives every sprint. We don't just meet SLAs—we work to improve them over time.
Proactive Communication
We flag risks before they become problems. No surprises, no finger-pointing, no blame games.
Fair & Flexible
SLAs adapt to your needs. We customize commitments based on your context, not rigid templates.
Sample SLA Summary
These are starting points. We'll work with you to define SLAs that match your specific needs and context.
Ready for Outsourcing with Real Accountability?
Let's discuss your requirements and how we'd structure SLAs and governance for your engagement. No generic templates—commitments tailored to what matters to you.
Common Questions
SLAs & Governance FAQ
Answers to questions we hear often about our accountability framework.
What SLAs does Salt provide for managed outsourcing?
Salt provides SLAs covering response time (4-hour acknowledgment for critical issues), availability (dedicated team during agreed hours), quality metrics (defect rates, code coverage), and delivery predictability (sprint commitment accuracy). Specific SLAs are tailored to each engagement based on your needs.
How does Salt ensure accountability in managed outsourcing?
Accountability is built into our model through dedicated account managers, transparent dashboards, regular reporting, defined escalation paths, and outcome-based success metrics. We track DORA metrics (deployment frequency, lead time, change failure rate, recovery time) and share them openly with clients.
What governance structures are in place?
Our governance includes daily async standups, weekly operational syncs with demos, monthly strategic reviews with SLA reporting, quarterly business reviews for roadmap alignment, clear escalation procedures with defined response times, and executive sponsorship on both sides.
How is communication structured with managed pods?
Communication includes daily standups (async or sync based on preference), weekly demos and planning sessions, dedicated Slack channels, shared project dashboards with real-time visibility, and a single point of contact (Account Manager) for any escalations. We guarantee timezone overlap for synchronous collaboration.
What happens if SLAs are not met?
We have defined remediation processes for SLA breaches including immediate root cause analysis, corrective action plans with timelines, process improvements to prevent recurrence, and in some cases, service credits. Our focus is on preventing issues through proactive monitoring, not just responding when things go wrong.
Can SLAs be customized for our specific needs?
Absolutely. While we have baseline SLAs that reflect our standards, we customize commitments based on your context. High-availability systems might need stricter response times. Early-stage products might prioritize velocity over coverage metrics. We work with you to define what success looks like.
Learn More
Related Resources
Explore more about how Salt works and our engagement options.