Software Engineering and Estimation for Decision Architectures (SEEDA)

Software sizing, schedule, cost, and risk assessment is a discipline that very few have mastered. This can be gleaned from the large percent of large software intensive developmental programs that encounter schedule and cost overruns. A current emergingtrend in system development is the use of Decision Architectures, using decision theory and knowledge management engineering. Current estimation models do not address system development using these new paradigms, such as Decision Architectures. DuringPhase I, FORELL demonstrated the feasibility of utilizing operational decisions as the bases for software sizing, schedule, cost and risk assessment. For Phase II, FORELL proposes to prototype this decision-based software estimation capability and extendthe initial capability to include continuous dynamic validation of the underlying parameters that were used in the initial software estimation, e.g., validate actual software productivity, resources, schedules and cost. We will evaluate the actualsoftware development progress on a continuous basis to provide an early warning capability and provide recommended corrective actions. To support the evaluation, we will use decision-based simulations, generating AI rules using FORELL's KBArchitectingr.KBArchitectingr is a new engineering paradigm for Decision Architectures.