Department of Homeland Security: Assessments of Selected Complex Acquisitions

Abstract

In fiscal year 2009, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had 67 major acquisitions intended to support a wide range of missions including securing our borders, mitigating natural disasters, and investigating security threats. Our work on major acquisitions at other federal departments and agencies has provided a framework for assessing DHS's acquisitions. We have found that a program must have a sound business case that includes firm requirements, a knowledge-based acquisition strategy, and realistic cost estimates in order to reduce program challenges. Further, we have found that acquisition oversight is more effective when regular reviews are held, an adequate workforce has been developed, and reliable cost, schedule and performance metrics are available. These conditions provide a program a reasonable chance of meeting its challenges yet delivering on time and within budget.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 2010
Accession Number
ADA523395

Entities

Organizations

  • United States Government Accountability Office

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • C4I
  • Cyber
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Biometric Security
  • Business Administration
  • Congress
  • Department Of Homeland Security
  • Detection
  • Detectors
  • Employment
  • Homeland Security
  • Information Systems
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Procurement
  • Software Testing
  • Systems Engineering
  • Test And Evaluation
  • United States Government
  • Warning Systems

Readers

  • Government and Public Administration Law.
  • Life Cycle Cost Analysis
  • Systems Analysis and Design