Scope should never be decreased below a minimum threshold for science and for technical achievement as defined by the mission success criteria. Both the project and the program should hold adequate contingency reserves, to ensure that mission success is achievable. Projects and programs that wind up with inadequate funding should obtain more funds or consider cancellation before proceeding with inadequate funds. Close attention should be paid from project outset to the plan for transition between development and operations. Adequate systems engineering staffing, particularly a mission systems engineer, should be in place to provide a bridge during the transition between development and operations, and also to support risk management trade studies.
Greater attention needs to be paid to risk identification and management.
Risk management should be employed throughout the life cycle of the project, much the way cost, schedule and content are managed. Project managers should copy the checklist located in the back of this report, putting it to constant use and adding to it in order to benchmark the performance of their project team. Moreover, this checklist should be distributed to all members of the project team as a 360-degree benchmark tool, to identify and reduce potential risk areas. Execution Most mission failures and serious errors can be traced to a breakdown in existing communication channels, or failure to follow existing processes - in other words, a failure in execution. To successfully shift to the Mission Success First culture, it is necessary for the institutional line management to become more engaged in the execution of a project.