ACQUISITION PATHOLOGIES

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ACQUISITION PATHOLOGIES

• MN3309 Session 17
• Prof. Mark Nissen

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Agenda

• Process Redesign Review
• Pathologies Best Practices
• S/W Acquisition Process Pathologies
• Best DoD Acquisition Practices
• Summary

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Aircraft System Design Model
Configuration Measurement
Wing Area
System
Thrust
Plastic
FBW
Performance - Speed - Altitude - Maneuverability
Weight
Environment
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Reengineering Success?
See, a perfect fit
Worked great for our other clients
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Second Wave of BPR Baseline Transformation

• Make legacy processes explicit
• Principal steps (from Davenport)
• Model current process flow
• Measure baseline process
• Diagnose process pathologies
• Match appropriate transformations
• Generate redesign alternatives
• Prototype test redesigns
• Presently KW done manually

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Redesigning Reengineering
Select
Implement
Model
Measure
Rqmts/Test
ID select process
Diagnose (taxonomy)
Generate
Match (taxonomy)
Inner loop like medical exam outer loop like
product design?
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Redesigning Reengineering
Select
Implement
Model
Measure
Test
ID select process
Diagnose
Generate
Match
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Configuration Dimensions Graph-Based Measures
Configuration
Performance
- Space (statics) length, breadth,
depth - Structure (AI, system dynamics)
feedback, parallelism, size - Dependency
(AI, coordination)
decomposability, producer-consumer, shared -
Organization (STS) job
specialization, centralization, job scope -
Technology (IS) IT-Support,
-Communication, -Automation
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Taxonomy of Process Pathologies

• 10 classes of common pathologies
• Problematic process structure (linear flows)
• Bureaucratic organization (job specialization)
• Fragmented process flows (process friction)
• IT infrastructure (manual, paper-based)
• Checking approach to quality (many reviews)
• Centralized authority (long decision chains)
• Under-utilized human potential (training v ed)
• Inhibitive leadership (directive supervision)
• Centralized information (central DB arch)
• Deficient core competencies (IT expertise)
• Like medical examination

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Taxonomy of Redesign Transformations

• 7 classes of common transformations
• Workflow reconfiguration (de-linearization)
• Information technology (shared DB system)
• Organizational design (case manager)
• Human resource (team-based compensation)
• Information availability (informate agents)
• Inter-org alliance (supplier-run inventory)
• Management culture (ESOP)
• Source of innovation opportunities?

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Measurement Example
Step 1 Step 2 Step 3
Step 4 Step 5 H
H H
H R AgentA R AgentB R AgentC
R AgentD R AgentE O Org1 O
Org2 O Org3 O Org4 O
Org5 S none S SysA S SysB
S SysC S SysD C phone C
paper C paper C paper C
paper A nil A nil A
nil A nil A nil
Measurements Size 5, Length 5, Feedback
1, Handoffs 4, IT-support 4, IT-Communication
0, IT-Automation 0
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BPR Example

• Credit Financing process
• Big ticket electronic equipment
• Key part of order fulfillment
• Customer, sales, credit, delivery VCs
• Independent, bureaucratic credit org
• 6-14 days cycle time for credit package
• No capability for internal tracking
• Losing customers tired of waiting

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Credit Financing Process
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Credit Financing - Level 1
Measurements Size 6, Length 6, Feedback
1, Handoffs 5, IT-support 4, IT-Communication
0, IT-Automation 0
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Acquisition Redesign Example

• Procurement processes (3)
• JA (small, simple)
• RFP (medium, average)
• LCP (large, complex)
• Major military sites (aviation)
• Approximately 220 contracts personnel
• Approximately .75B/yr
• Well-managed organization (TQM etc.)

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JA Process - Level 1
Basic structure - Attributed Digraph
Customer JA doc CS
Approvals File assist
assign
- Level (1) - Type (A) - Agent(CS) -
Cardinality(1) - Org(Procurement) - Inputs(Stub,
rqmts) - Outputs(JA_draft) - Tools(NIL) -
Communication(Paper)
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JA Level-2 Approvals
Task List 11 Legal review 10 KO review 8 RACA
review 6 PACA review 3 NAVAIR review
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JA Process Measurements
indicates theoretical minimum for measure
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JA Redesign Alternatives
indicates superiority by process experts
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JA Process Specification
indicates theoretical minimum for measure
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Innovation Case Assignment

• Redesign the Process
• Represent using A-digraph
• Include org, agent, tools, other info
• Measure process
• Diagnose pathologies
• Identify transformations
• Generate at least two redesigns
• Refer to examples in KOPeR
• Also in MISQ article

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Pathologies Best Practices

• Hierarchy of learning
• Pathologies - experience problems
• Process flaws, faults, errors, inefficiencies
• Lessons learned
• College of hard knocks
• Must struggle before learning
• Virtual learning? Modeling simulation?
• Best practices - transformations
• Learn from successes failures
• Benchmark against best practices
• Reengineering --gt better than the best

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Software Acquisition Process Pathologies

• S/W acquisition examples? CSAWS?
• Taxonomy of process pathologies
• Problematic process structure (linear flows)
• Bureaucratic organization (job specialization)
• Fragmented process flows (process friction)
• IT infrastructure (manual, paper-based)
• Checking approach to quality (many reviews)
• Centralized authority (long decision chains)
• Under-utilized human potential (training v ed)
• Inhibitive leadership (directive supervision)
• Centralized information (central DB arch)
• Deficient core competencies (IT expertise)

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C-17 Process Pathologies

• How not to run S/W program!
• C-17 problems
• Behind schedule
• Over budget
• High risk
• Maintenance difficulties by design
• Process pathologies?

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Test Evaluation

• Acquisition Reform initiatives
• Shorten TE
• Reduces program cost cycle time
• GAO opposes
• TE is critical acquisition control element
• Fly before you buy
• Pathologies with TE?

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BSY-2 Lessons

• BSY-2
• 3M SLOC
• 100 CSCIs
• No one understands it all
• Span developers, geography, commands
• Emotional mission statement
• Process improvement culture
• Strong configuration management
• Ada use

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IT Best Practices

• Federal execs can learn from business
• Business process reengineering
• Liberty Mutual - insurance policy
• 62 days gt 3 days
• Paper-based process, 24 handoffs, functional
  orgs, isolated IT - taxonomy?
• IBM Credit - credit financing
• 7 days gt 4 hours
• Linear, paper-based process, functional orgs,
  isolated IT - taxonomy?

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IT Best Practices (Cont)

• Business process reengineering (cont)
• Eastman Chemical - parts ordering
• Reduced time by 80, 1M/yr savings
• Manual, paper-based, labor-intensive process -
  taxonomy?
• Bureau of Reclamation - grants approval
• 6 months gt 1 week
• Bureaucracy, lack of technology - taxonomy?
• Paperwork Reduction Act (95)
• Link agency plans with IT projects
• Manage IT projects as investments

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IT Best Practices (Cont)

• OMB Circular A-130 (gov policy guide)
• Requires agencies to redesign processes
• Investigate appropriate application of IT
• IT Management Reform Act (96)
• Agencies to use capital planning methods for IT
  investment decisions
• Measure IT performance outcomes
• Appoint agency CIOs
• Streamline procurement process

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SPMN - Breathalyzer

• DUI S/W management pathologies
• Do you have a current, credible activity network
  supported by a work breakdown structure (WBS)?
• Do you have a current, credible schedule and
  budget?
• Do you know what software you are responsible for
  delivering?
• Can you list the current top ten project risks?
• Do you know your schedule compression percentage?

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SPMN - Breathalyzer (Cont)

• DUI S/W management pathologies
• What is the estimated size of your software
  deliverable? How was it derived?
• Do you know the percentage of external interfaces
  that are not under your control?
• Does your staff have sufficient expertise in the
  project domains?
• Have you identified adequate staff to allocate to
  the scheduled tasks at the right time?

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SPMN - Best Practices

• Learned from S/W process pathologies
• Formal Risk Management
• Agreement On Interfaces
• Formal Peer Reviews
• Metric-Based Scheduling and Management
• Binary Quality Gates at the Inch-Pebble Level
• Program-Wide Visibility of Project Plan
  Progress vs. Plan
• Defect Tracking Against Quality Targets
• Configuration Management
• People-Aware Management Accountability

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Summary

• BPR become better than the best
• Process focus
• Quantum performance improvement
• 6 steps for process redesign
• Model measure (VPM)
• Diagnose pathologies match transforms
• Generate test redesign alternatives
• Must identify process pathologies first
• Taxonomy can help