The use of a multiphase procurement procedure, and the award of small grants to clarify the status of critical technologies and to develop detailed cost and staffing models before the final selection of a hardware fabrication team has frequently turned out to be cost effective. At present, only the managerial role is being well handled. There are several different ways to cover these tasks, depending on the people involved, but there is no denying that the remaining jobs are simply too complex and demanding to be filled by one person. The ability of NOAO to broker instrument deals with universities in the future will be critical. The present strategy doesn't seem to be working.
Delegation of authority is crucial.
Therefore, we recommend that the Project Manager be elevated to a level comparable to the Project Scientist and they both report to a project director, with a clear division of responsibilities. The job requires more scientists than are now assigned. The review committee strongly recommends that the USGP carry out quarterly reviews for each of the US instruments under their supervision. In addition the subsystems should have a detailed review of design and analysis status. IGPO states they now do not object to the wording.