The use of pilot systems varies among Federal agencies.
Some agencies routinely use pilot testing for almost every major systems implementation.
Others use pilot testing in a more ad hoc manner, based on the size, scope, and complexity of the project or to evaluate the hardware and software that will be used. In some cases, it was not clear why some systems within an agency had a pilot phase while others did not. For both agencies, their critical systems impact large dollar amounts and affect a wide number of people. Testing is critical to ensure the systems are working correctly prior to full implementation. The costs of the impact of implementing a system with an error outweighs the cost of piloting the system.