Date of Award

12-22-2011

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Department

Department of Systems Engineering and Management

First Advisor

Joseph R. Wirthlin, PhD.

Abstract

There is currently no accepted method for quantitative measurement of acquisition program interdependency. While some methods exist for measuring dependency or interdependency at the component or system level, these methods do not translate well to program interdependency measurement. The objective of this thesis is to provide a model for measuring acquisition program interdependency accurately and quantitatively. The model presented in this thesis uses four Interdependency Factors to identify dependency relationships between programs. Specific Interdependency Levels are then used to measure the strengths of those dependencies. The model also accounts for measurement of dependencies upon programs that are not directly connected, i.e., programs that have a degree of separation from another program, and measurement of program criticality, or the extent to which a program is depended-upon. In this thesis, the measurement model is applied to an example program to measure program dependency characteristics. The results demonstrate that the model can be effectively used to identify and measure program dependencies. The model gives the program manager a quantitative tool to determine how much a program depends upon other programs and the potential impacts of those dependencies. With this information, program managers can better protect against vulnerabilities associated with interdependent effects from other programs

AFIT Designator

AFIT-GSE-ENV-11-D02DL

DTIC Accession Number

ADA553730

Download

Share

COinS