Adaptive Test Process – Designing a Project Plan that Adapts to the State of a Project

Conventional techniques for project planning make the flawed assumption that all activities and relations are known and can be planned a priori. Iteration models show that iteration is a fundamental aspect of novel projects, but they also assume all activities and interactions are known. Of course, some kind of hypothesized project baseline (plan) is required for management. Such plans are acknowledged to be imperfect, so management reserves are kept for schedule and budget where possible. How big should these reserves be? This paper describes research on an improved approach to process planning and control whereby activity modes are allowed to vary and dynamically recombine based on the evolving state of the project as it progresses. If the project is behind schedule or over budget, then activities or iterations which would seem prudent from a technical performance standpoint may not be feasible as originally planned. Similarly, if a project is ahead of schedule or under budget, additional improvements versus the original plan may add value. What is prudent depends on the effect of any action on the overall value of the project. As such decisions are made under uncertainty, the proposed approach accounts for uncertainties and their impacts (risks) in the decision. By assuming from the outset—while formulating the project plan—that the project will adapt, it is possible to build an improved project plan, one that is more accurate, realistic and flexible. Additionally, the proposed method supports management decisions about potential corrective actions during project execution. This paper applies the approach in the context of system verification and validation (V&V) processes.