tester Flashcards

Question

What is the Trade Study?

Answer 1

A trade study is a systematic decision-making process used to identify the best solution among a set of proposed alternatives. flow: - Create operational performance measures - identify all the independent stimuli that can activate mission thread - define all the independently schedulable entities - create the mission threads - create alternative groupings of those entities into actual implementation groupings - postulate a set of candidate designs - identify the technical performance measures that you need to assess the candidate designs - assess the technical feasibility of each candidate design - create a methodology for ranking the candidate designs - traverse the trade space, and then scope and rank the candidate designs.

Answer 2

- Organize policies and guidelines - customer-specified policies and guidelines Inputs: - requirements - CONOPS (Concept of Operations) - OPMS / TPMs (operational / technical performance measures) - previous design patterns deemed suitable Outputs: - selected design, with rationale - rejected designs with rationale - documented trade study and other analysis results Enablers: - modeling and analysis tools - organizational lessons-learned, and libraries of artifacts from past projects These all point to : Designing a system: - define the pressure points - perform the trade study - perform detailed analysis of the selected candidate design; adapt & iterate, if required - finalize selection. Document rationale, assessment findings for all candidates, archive all materials

Answer 3

customer's - usually non-technical in nature - characterizes something about the mission - captured in what I call operational performance measures - measures the goodness of the design for the users engineer's - usually technical in nature - characterizes something about the technology that implements the system - captured in what I call technical performance measures - measures whether or not the design is feasible, and helps us estimate the schedule and cost needed to build the system The two types of metrics should be linked; that is, we need to credibly and transparently show how changes in design (which change the technical performance measures) cause changes to the operational performance measures Our degrees of design freedom are located in the engineer's coordinate system of value, but we measure the goodness of the resulting design in the customer's coordinate system of value.

Answer 4

- Needs Assessment - Biz Case - Benefits Management Plan

Answer 5

- Operation - Maintenance

Answer 6

- Meet biz objectives - Satisfy stakeholder expectations - be more predictable - increase chances of success - deliver the right products at the right time - resolve problems and issues - respond to risks in a timely manner - optimize the use of organizational resources - identify, recover, or terminate failing projects - manage constraints (scope, quality, schedule, cost, resources) - respond to rapidly evolving markets - manage change using a controlled process Gain Alignment

Answer 7

- Missed requirements - Missed deadlines - cost overruns - poor quality - rework - waste - uncontrolled expansion of the project - loss of reputation for the organization - unsatisfied stakeholders - failure in achieving project objectives

Answer 8

Initiation Process

Answer 9

Initiation Process

Answer 10

Planning Process

Answer 11

- Develop Project Management Plan - Plan Scope Management - Collect requirements - define scope - create wbs - plan schedule management - define activities - sequence activities - estimate activity durations - develop schedule - plan cost management - estimate costs - determine budget - plan quality management - plan resource management - estimate activity resources - plan communications management - plan risk management - identify risks - perform qualitative risk analysis - perform quantitative risk analysis - plan risk responses - plan procurement management - plan stakeholder engagement

Answer 12

- direct/manage project work - manage project knowledge - manage quality - acquire resources - develop team - manage team - manage communications - implement risk responses - conduct procurements - manage stakeholders - engagement

Answer 13

- monitor/control project work - perform integrated change control - validate scope - control scope - control schedule - control costs - control quality - control resources - monitor communications - monitor risks - control procurements - monitor stakeholder engagement

Answer 14

Executing Process

Answer 15

- Project Life Cycle - the series of phases that a project passes through from its start to its completion - Project Phase - a collection of logically related project activities that culminates in the completion of one or more deliverables - Phase Gate - a review at the end of a phase in which a decision is made to continue to the next phase, to continue with modification, or to end a program or project - Project Management Process - a systematic series of activities directed toward causing an end result where one or more inputs will be added upon to create one or more outputs - Project Management Process Group - a logical grouping of project management inputs, tools, and techniques, and outputs. Including initiating, planning, executing, monitoring & controlling, and closing. Project Management Groups are NOT project phases.

Answer 16

Inputs, Tools, Techniques, and Outputs

Answer 17

technical performance measures - technical goals (objectives) that must be met (reliability, speed, weight, power required) operational performance measures - process goals (subjective) that must be met (efficiency, productivity, quality, customer satisfaction)

Answer 18

Verification - Determines if the system is EFFECTIVE (objective) - Does the system meet its formal and documented requirements? - Are we therefore ready to deliver it, and request final payment? Validation - Determines if the system is SUITABLE (subjective) - Does the system provide value and utility for its intended users? TODO add table page 24

Answer 19

- Define the verification action (what will be inspected, measured, executed or simulated) for every mandatory requirement - Define the expected result (pass-fail criteria) for each verification action - create a procedure (step-by-step checklist and methodology) for executing the verification actions - Execute the procedures and record the results - Determine (objectively) which requirements pass and which fail

Answer 20

- Create a list of items to validate - define a validation action - define the user's goals and expectation for each validation action - create a procedure (step-by-step checklist and methodology) for executing the validation actions - execute the procedures and record the results - determine (likely subjective in part) which items pass and which fail

Answer 21

- inspection we look at something, but we do not operate or manipulate it - demonstration we operate a portion of our system and observe a visible indication - analysis we do not operate the system, but we subject a portion of it to a mathematical analysis - simulation we build a computer model of the system and use the predictions from that model to show compliance with a model - assessment via operation we operate / manipulate the system or item under test, we record data and results, and then process those data to check performance

Answer 22

* Prepare the test verification matrix (e.g. select a test method for each requirement). * Define test levels for each requirement (which I discuss below). * Make a preliminary grouping of requirements into test cases (where each test case is a set of requirements that can be tested together, through a set of related actions). * Define scenarios, test data, stimulators/drivers, instrumentation, analysis tools for each test case. Look for similarities across test cases. Use information to improve groupings into test cases. * Develop sequencing of test cases and their interdependencies (e.g., one cannot start until another has completed).

Answer 23

- Make multiple copies of the system - put the system into service - use the system in actual operation

Answer 24

When the system has reached the end of its usable lifetime and is taken out of service

Answer 25

- The project's objectives have been reached - the objectives will not or cannot be met - funding is exhausted or no longer available to the project - the need for the project no longer exists (customer cancels project, a change in strategy or priority) - the human or physical resources are no longer available - the project is terminated for legal cause or convenience

Answer 26

Inputs: - project charter - biz docs - project management plan - project docs - agreements - enterprise environmental factors - organizational process assets Tools & Techniques - expert judgement - data gathering - data analysis - data representation - meetings Outputs: - stakeholder registry - change requests - project management plan updates - risk management plan, stakeholder engagement plan, communications management plan, requirements management plan - project documents updates - risk register, issue log, assumption log

Answer 27

people who have a vital interest in the outcome of the project and can influence the project. - Customer - uses the project deliverables - Project Sponsor - provides resources and support - Functional Manager - controls resources - Project Manager - manages the project - Project Team - individuals completing the project Others: - competitor - inspector - employee - share holder INTERNAL STAKEHOLDERS: - project manager and team, customer, sponsor, investors, etc EXTERNAL STAKEHOLDERS: - regulators, consultants, sellers, end users, customers, partners, competitors, etc

Answer 28

Users - people who will operate and/or employ the product or service resulting from the engineering project - To fulfill the PURPOSE of the engineering project. - An engineering project has no benefit if it does not meet the needs of the user / customer / stakeholder

Answer 29

Project Initiation - crucial for understanding stakeholder needs, expectations, and influences on the project's success Planning Phase - refine the project's communication strategy, risk-management plans, and resource allocation to address stakeholder priorities and mitigate risks / stakeholder concerns. Project Changes - can alter stakeholder power, interest, or influence, necessitating adjustments in how they are managed Project Reviews and Milestones - ensure ongoing alignment with stakeholder expectations and can allow for adjustments to engagement strategies as the project progresses Problem Identification - identify the root causes, address concerns and minimize negative impacts.

Answer 30

Power (Dormant) - stakeholder's ability to influence the project or its outcomes Legitimacy (Discretionary) - the perceived validity or appropriateness of the stakeholder's involvement in the project Urgency (Demanding) - extent to which a stakeholder's needs require immediate attention - PL: Dominant - LU: Dependent - PU: Dangerous - Center: Core

Answer 31

X axis - Interest Y axis - Attitude Z axis - Power It's a technique for prioritizing and analyzing stakeholders in a project. The cube has three dimensions or axes: * Attitude: Whether the stakeholder is for or against the project * Power: The stakeholder's ability to influence the project * Interest: How much the stakeholder is impacted by the project Stakeholders are mapped onto the cube based on their combination of these three factors. This mapping helps categorize stakeholders into different groups, such as: * Influential active backers * Influential passive blockers * Insignificant active allies And others, depending on their position in the cube The purpose of using the stakeholder cube is to: * Understand the different types of stakeholders * Prioritize stakeholder engagement efforts * Develop appropriate strategies for managing each stakeholder group

Answer 32

Communication Mode Y axis: - Power / Importance - indicates the degree to which a project cannot be considered successful if needs, expectations and issues are not addressed X axis: - Interest / Influence - indicates a stakeholder's relative power over and within a project Top Right - Manage Closely Top Left - Keep Satisfied Bottom Left - Monitor Bottom Right - Keep Informed

Answer 33

TODO Forward Strategy Backward Monitoring Sideward Colleagues Outward Client, Supply Chain Upward Sponsor Downward Team

Answer 34

Identification - Name - Title - Contact Information Assessment - Requirements - Communication Needs and Frequency - Expectations - Power, interest, influence on the project Classification - attributes to stakeholders (internal, external, positive, supporter, resistor, or neutral) Example: Name: Brian Role: Client Group (Internal / External): External Type: Positive Group: Sponsor Influence/Interest: High-Power/High-interest Address: NY

Answer 35

- identify all stakeholders as early as possible. Discovering them late can result in request changes that impact your project - determine their requirements and expectations before you start, including what stakeholders think will happen because of the project - Determine their interest to help you structure your work, roles, and responsibilities to maximize engagement - Understand their level of influence and authority. Leverage it to the benefit of the project - Create a plan to engage and communicate with stakeholders: Keep the stakeholders involved in the project. Get them to convey their thoughts and concerns to help prevent problems. Stage in lifecycle: - Initiation (identification) - Planning - Execution (Implementation) - Controlling (Monitoring and Evaluation) - Closing Type of Participation: - Inform - Consult - Partnership - Control

Answer 36

V -> lifecycle time line _ _ \ _ / Extremely High Stakeholder involvement (top left of V _) - Concept Exploration - Systems Engineering Management Plan Framework High Stakeholder involvement (decomposition and definition) (Level side of V \) - Concepts of operations - system requirements - subsystem requirements project arch (HLD) Minimal Stakeholder involvement (bottom of the V _ ) - Component Level Design (Detailed) - Software Coding Hardware fabrication - Unit Testing High Stakeholder involvement (integration and recomposition ) (right side of V /) - Subsystem integration & verification - system integration & verification - system validation

Answer 37

Aspire to make quantitative statements about the users' value system we translate qualitative statements about the users' system of values into a quantitative metric (operational performance measure) that we could use to guide decision-making about our project

Answer 38

- simplify the structure of tasks - make the appropriate things visible - devise an appropriate partitioning of tasks between the automation and the users - allow the system to continue to operate effectively even in the presence of errors, especially in the presence of human errors

Answer 39

Top-Down - Completion to Conception - Concrete to Abstract Surface: - brings everything together visually Skeleton: - Makes structure concrete Structure - gives shape to scope Scope - transforms strategy into requirements Strategy - is where is all begins

Answer 40

- Providing functionality, performance, or capacity that no competing product or system can provide * Value-for-money: a disruptive price–performance point * A higher level of safety, reliability, or other tangible benefit * Unusually well-suited for the intended purpose * Can be operated by the intended users * Style, look, aura, and other intangible factors

Answer 41

Table Process: - Identify stakeholders - Plan Stakeholder Engagement - Manage stakeholder engagement - Monitor Stakeholder Engagement Process Group: - Initiate - Plan - Execute - Monitor & Contorl Main Output: - Stakeholder registry - Stakeholder Management Plan - Change Requests - Work Performance Information Change Requests & Project Document updates

Answer 42

Stakeholder Engagement Assessment: - Unaware - Resistant - Neutral - Supportive - Leading N(N-1)/2

Answer 43

Table: - Name - S1: Neutral (current) -> Leading (Desired) - S2: Unaware(current) -> supportive (desired) - Unaware - Resistant - Neutral - Supportive - Leading

Answer 44

- is a response to a request for proposals (RFP) specifying, at a minimum, what the proposing team could provide, how long it would take, and how much it would cost "is a written formal offer to perform a specified piece of work, under specified conditions, to create a specified set of deliverables (products, services, and data), on a specified schedule, for a specified price, under a specified set of payment terms and timing, and under a specified set of contract terms (e.g. how to resolve disputes, etc.)"

Answer 45

- Step 1: Obtain authorization (and in some cases funds) to prepare a proposal. - understand the problem - how to solve the problem - How to measure the goodness of your solution - How to prove that you can solve the problem and achieve differentiation - How to show that it can be a viable business proposition - Step 2: Do what is needed so that you are allowed to submit the proposal. - Price to win - Time phasing of costs versus time phasing of revenues - Opportunity costs - Risks to the company - Probability of winning - Step 3: Win the competition. - Articulate well the value proposition. - Differentiators that we offer and Want factors – are there aspects of our offer that will make the customer prefer to select us over the other bidders? - Trust – Have we earned this customer’s trust? - Schedule – Is our proposed delivery date credible to the customer? - Budget – How much will it cost? Does the team have institutional support? - Contractual terms and Compliance - Step 4: Close the deal. - Even after you are selected, you must still sign a contract. - Creating a contract that both parties are willing to sign involves contract negotiations (topic of CLSE 602). - Contracts are detailed and legally binding. - The process involves the proposer, contract specialists, and attorneys. User has a need - Buyer prepares RFP Buyer issues an RFP - Your company finds and analyzes RFP Vendor makes bid / no-bid decision - Prepare win plan Prepare Proposal Presentation - Buyer selects winner Negotiation - Reach agreement on terms Sign the contract - initiate project

Answer 46

Request for Information (RFI) * Purpose: To gather general information * Timing: Early in the process * Detail level: Basic, open-ended questions * Commitment: Low, just exploring options * Response: Brief, informational answers Request for Proposal (RFP) * Purpose: To get specific project proposals * Timing: Later, when ready to buy Detail level: Specific requirements and questions * Commitment: Higher, intending to make a purchase * Response: Detailed proposals with pricing and plans

Answer 47

(Meant for proposals) Approach 1 * What are you trying to do? Articulate your objectives using absolutely no jargon. * How is it done today, and what are the limits of current practice? * What is new in your approach and why do you think it will be successful? * Who cares? If you are successful, what difference will it make? * What are the risks? * How much will it cost? * How long will it take? * What are the mid-term and final “exams” to check for success?

Answer 48

(Meant for proposals) Approach 2 * Understand the users’ coordinate system of value. * Define the design features that would make the customer want us to do the work. * Create differentiators and socialize them with users and stakeholders, especially the sponsor. * To the reviewers, your proposal must be the best submitted, where best is relative to the pool of applicants not an absolute quality standard. * Tell the story in a clear, comprehensive, easy-to-understand way. * Gather data on how to take measurements to prove success. * Depict the design using figures, tables, graphs. * Include contingency plans for mitigating risks. * Start early! * Build a strong relationship with the customer community. * Marshal strong and credible examples of good past performance, and how they are relevant to this proposal. * Understand the competition. * Select teaming partners to fill in your weaknesses and to strengthen your desired differentiators.

Answer 49

(Meant for proposals) Approach 3 * Introduce your audience to the topic by conveying your interest and excitement about the topic, the problem, and the ongoing conversation in the field. * Explain why there’s a barrier to progress, which is typically a gap in knowledge or thinking. * Present the stakes (consequences) if the gap goes unaddressed and the new circumstances/tools/approaches that create an opening to solve the gap that hooks the audience. * Describe the goal of your study that directly references the gap. The persuasiveness of your solution depends on how well you articulated the gap and the hook. Problem: What's wrong? Identify a big scientific or real-world issue Gap: What don't we know? Highlight a specific lack of knowledge or understanding Hook: Why does it matter? Explain the importance of filling this gap Solution: How will you fix it? Propose your research to address the gap An easy way to remember this is the acronym "PGHS" or the phrase: "People Get Hooked on Solutions" Think of it as telling a story: Start with a problem (the villain) Identify the gap in our defenses Hook the audience with why it's crucial Introduce your solution (the hero)

Answer 50

* Intellectual Merits – the potential to advance knowledge and understanding within its own field and/or across different fields * Broader Impacts – the potential to benefit society and contribute to the achievement of specific, desired societal outcomes. Why is the proposed project worth doing? * To what extent do the proposed activities suggest and explore creative, original, or potentially transformative concepts? Can the team can be trusted to implement the proposed project on schedule and on budget? * Is the plan well-reasoned, well-organized, and based on a sound rationale? Does the plan incorporate mechanisms to assess success? * How well qualified is the principal investigator (PI) and team to conduct the proposed activities? * Is the proposed project feasible? * Are there adequate resources available to the PI (either at the home organization or through collaborations) to carry out the project? * Significance * Does this project address an important problem? * What impact is the project likely to have on the field? * What impact is the project likely to have on society? * Approach * Are study design and methods feasible and appropriate for the results desired? * Are the statistical methods sufficient to detect any possible results? * Innovation * Is the project original? * Does the project develop or use novel techniques or ideas? * Investigators * Are the investigators experienced in the performance of this type of project? * Is there appropriate senior investigator and/or consultant support, where necessary? * Environment * Is there appropriate institutional support and facilities to complete the project?

Answer 51

* Determine the suitability (fit) of the proposal to the RFP before writing. * The research must match the priority goals specified in the RFP. * Start early! * There is more than just the proposal description that needs to be submitted to the sponsor. * Be nice to the office of sponsored research staff. * They help with the budget and checking your proposal is compliant. * Proposals require persuasive writing that is accessible to a broad audience. * Your proposal is not about you, it is about your reviewers. * Think like a reviewer. * Make it easy for the reviewer to find what they need to rate your proposal. * Make it clear by simply explaining the project goal, central hypothesis, aims, and tasks. Help the reviewer get up to speed on the state of the science in your field and state explicitly the value of the proposed work. * Make the reviewers care so they advocate for your project to be funded. * Socialize your proposal. * Get colleagues to review your proposal and provide feedback before submission. This may also assist with finding typos or errors. * If at first you don’t succeed, try again. * Funding rates are low and perseverance can pay off.

Answer 52

Inputs, Tools, Techniques, and Outputs It's a framework used in project management to help identify the resources, information, and plans needed to create and implement a project. ITTOs are a helpful tool that can be used in conjunction with other tools, such as the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and the Gantt chart. Together, these tools can help create a more detailed picture of the project and help identify any potential risks or issues. Here's how ITTOs can be used: Inputs: The ingredients needed to complete a task Tools and techniques: The methods used to transform the inputs into the outputs Outputs: The final product that is produced