What are the foundational steps to develop a repeatable and scalable launch discipline?

I would suggest establishing process and structure around launches, like determining the tier and then based on the tier having a launch template with the typical activities and teams to engage. More detail in my response on this question: https://sharebird.com/ama/zendesk-director-of-product-marketing-teresa-haun-on-product-launches?answer=DjEBP934m2

Thanks for the great question and for including the word discipline. Your b2b product launch needs to be approached in a disciplined manner as it represents significant financial and resource investment while prospectively contributing to your company's sustained growth. 

Stats from analysts and progressive GTM thought leaders such as OpenView Partners paint a grim picture for b2b product launches with 60%+ failing. As such, approach your product launch efforts in a disciplined manner versus another process or, worse yet, checklist. 

Your launch discipline defines the components required for an audience-centric approach to bring your solutions to the market. There are dozens of deliverables to be orchestrated, and a team of contributors aligned in their efforts. A successful launch sets the foundation for a product to achieve success in the marketplace, and it requires optimal orchestration both internally and externally. 

The following foundational steps (each with a host of activities) cover the go-to-market deliverables to ensure your company's "commercial readiness." Pl note your engineering and product teams may utilize a set of deliverables and efforts to ensure the "product readiness" state for your launch efforts. 

Step 1 – Determine whether your launch is major, minor or a release. Establishing your launch tier will help to correlate activities to your launch objectives before you progress through the subsequent launch stages:

1. Empower a launch captain (approved by the CRO, CMO, CPO), a cross-functional launch team, and 3rd party vendors (agencies) to lay the groundwork inclusive of schedule, milestones, roles and responsibilities, budget, metrics, etc. There are typically 15+ activities to determine whether the launch captain and team are ready to start planning the launch.
   - Selecting your launch captain bears ultimate responsibility for your product launches success or failure as such choose well. I believe this individual should represent your product marketing team as they understand the product, the differentiated position within the market you choose to serve, and competitors you decide to crush. Furthermore, as much as the product's user is the hero to your product management team, the buyer is the hero for the product marketing team – who better to lead the charge!
   - Finally, personality, leadership acumen, and project management skills are paramount. Collectively herding the team, leading them to achieve their best work, conflict resolution, fostering collaboration, and executing with precision are skills not for the faint of heart. As such, choose a well-rounded launch captain.
   - Further, I recommend considering the following folks for your launch team (esp for a major launch): product management, product marketing, marketing communications, brand, demand generation, channel management/ marketing, sales management, sales operations (new skus & pricing changes or introductions?), sales enablement, services, technical teams (dev & engineering rep to keep "product promises/ features & timelines" real), operations, customer support, project management, customer success (how does this impact current customers), analyst relations, and public relations
2. Create the launch plan alongside product, sales, marketing, and executive sponsor(s) and brief all internal and external stakeholders. (e.g. beta customers, analysts, press, etc.) It takes approximately 40+ activities, including need/ problem analysis, TAM, buyer profile & propensity to buy, goals, budget, pricing, profitability analysis, messaging, market opportunity assessment, etc. to ensure a sound launch plan. 
3. Ensure your sales, marketing and operational readiness by finalizing your customer acquisition (demand generation and sales-readiness) deliverables. These include an additional 40+ activities, including user and buyer personas, competitive analysis, product training, solution-selling playbooks, compensation and incentive plans, channel and partner playbooks, collateral across the buyer's deciding journey, direct and channel communication plans, briefing and enabling 3rd party stakeholders, etc.

Finally, take the time to debrief after the launch, review your results and document lessons learned. Debriefs are not a one-time affair. One should occur a week post-launch as some metrics are available. After that, ensure a monthly cadence to track progress towards your set measurable launch goals.

1. Create a Leadership Team: - Typically composed of the PMM who will lead the launch, define messaging and positioning and rally the org plus the product manager who owns the product and then key stakeholders from PR, Analyst Relations, and GTM / Sales Readiness.
2. Set a timeline: Build a detailed timeline with key launch milestones such as when the product will be ready, executive reviews, the deadline for creative requests, and content creation timelines. Getting clarity on dependencies and the time needed to deliver is essential. Having a launch day helps to develop a work back schedule.
3. Activate and align the x-functional team: Teamwork is the most important aspect of launching products -- a good team can operate quickly, independently, and have fun while delivering business results. A disconnected team without trust will often stall on launches, require oversight -- and generate more meetings than necessary. Key members of the cross-functional team are sales enablement, customer/partner teams, the broader PM org, internal and external comms teams in addition to PR (i.e. social, blogs), content, campaign, and creative teams.
4. Agree on the Bill of Materials: Once you’ve got the team in place - focus on the Bill of Materials (the essential marketing content needed such as the customer pitch, FAQ (internal/external), press release, product demo, etc.), entry/exit criteria to determine product readiness and the training and roll-out plan for sales.
5. Brief Executives: Keep execs updated with briefings that also line up to signoff moments.

One of the most important steps is to get organizational alignment and buy-in that you need a launch discipline. Some early-stage organizations may prioritize agility and move quickly without formal processes. It's crucial to ensure everyone recognizes the value of having a structured approach. 

Once alignment is in place, keep the launch discipline simple and adaptable to your organization's culture. Begin with a straightforward framework and build upon it gradually to add complexity as needed. Two fundamental elements for this process are having a central Go-To-Market (GTM) point of contact who can coordinate and rally teams and a reliable, easily accessible product roadmap with spec docs so that the launch task force can have clarity and insight on what is launching and when.