> ... fix this development team without managing them directly ... That is your core problem. If you are not directly managing then how can you bring about any

> ... fix this development team without managing them directly ... That is your core problem. If you are not directly managing then how can you bring about any changes? If HQ management can't see the problems you see, then you are unlikely to receive any support for the changes you are contemplating. Your number one problem is politics not technology.