Tailoring the Systems Engineering Technical Review implementation within naval acquisition

Abstract

The systems engineering technical review (SETR) process should be an event- driven process that consists of one or more programmatically independent reviews with defined entrance and exit criteria. The SETR assesses the technical health, requirements accuracy, design maturity, testing effectiveness, and sustainment support over the program life cycle. This thesis focuses on how to tailor the SETR implementation to improve the program’s return on investment (ROI). To address the research question, a literature review was performed focusing on SETR-related policy, instructions, and memoranda and a survey was conducted of subject matter experts. Leveraging a tailored SETR implementation provides the necessary structured engineering framework while keeping up with a dynamic software development environment to meet the increasing need for enhanced capability delivered to the warfighter in a shorter timeframe. More than 80% of the survey respondents indicated tailoring was occurring within programs to address specific needs such as leveraging an agile software development model. Factors external to the organization continue to be the primary obstacle no matter the program size. Future naval software acquisition programs should engage leadership, focus on preparation, maintain communication early and often, and educate stakeholders to improve the ROI of the tailored SETR implementation.