Systems/Software ICM Workshop

Acquisition and Process IssuesWorking Group

Rick Selby and Rich Turner

Systems/Software ICM WorkshopJuly 14-17, 2008Washington DC

Some Quotes for Context Setting● "The only way we will have large acquisition programs on schedule,

within budget, and performing as expected, is for everyone - from Congress down to the suppliers - to all stop lying to each other at the same time."

● "Software's just another specialty discipline and doesn't deserve special attention. Integrating software engineering into the development is the job of the chief system engineer."

● "It takes so long for a program to reach deployment that we are essentially acquiring legacy systems."

● "Spiral process is nothing more than the vee chart rolled up."

● "There is no such thing as an emergent requirement."

● "Evolutionary acquisition is just a ploy to excuse the software guys’ incompetence and let programs spiral forever without having to deliver something."

Some Topics for Discussion: Acquisition and Process

● Quality Factor Tradeoffs– Integrating hardware and software quality factor evidence planning and preparation

guidelines– Coordinating single-quality-factor IPTs

● Cost and Risk– Budgeting for systems and software risk mitigation– Risk-driven earned value management– Translating shortfalls in feasibility evidence into next-increment risk management

plans● Requirements

– Concurrently engineering vs. allocating system, hardware, software, and human factors requirements

– Methods for dealing with requirements emergence and rapid change● Competitive Prototyping

– Supporting value-adding continuity of prototype development and evaluation teams

● Topic Specifics– Synchronizing different-length hardware and software increments– Early hardware-software integration: hardware surrogates– Contracting for 3-team developer/V&Ver/next-increment rebaseliner incremental

development

©USC-CSSE

Incremental Commitment Life Cycle ProcessStage I: Definition Stage II: Development and Operations

Understanding ICM Model for Software● Reconciling the milestones

– Where are LCO/LCA/IOC and SRR/PDR/CDR?– When are the downselects: 3 to 2, 2 to 1?

● How to drive behavior– RFP language– Award fee– Large carrot (sole winner of major program)

● How long does the competitive phase last (ends at Milestone B, ends later, etc)?

● Create a “whole new contractor role” that gets awarded to the 2-to-1 downselect non-winner

– External evaluators come into reviews (“air dropped”) and have a high entry barrier and limited context to achieve success

– Loss of valuable expertise in the non-winner– Non-winner becomes the “evaluator” of evidence throughout the program

● What kinds of evidence/prototypes are needed for what kinds of risks?● Funding

– Who pays for pre vs post 2-to-1 downselect (what color)?● How do you use CP to do:

– New approaches for model definition and validation– Quality attribute trades (non-functional)