Nonstationary Root Causes of Cobb's Paradox

Abstract

Cobb's Paradox states, "We know why [programs] fail; we know how to prevent their failure-so why do they still fail?" One possibility is that we do not really know why programs fail and there is no paradox. Another possibility is that some of the problems that lead to program failure may not be susceptible to practical solution, so that continued failure is not paradoxical. This article defines what we mean by nonstationary root causes of program failures, and identifies 10 such causes. Requirements volatility, funding stability, process immaturity, and lack of discipline are often cited among the reasons. The article ends with recommended approaches to mitigate the effects of influences from the environment that change over time-nonstationary effects.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jul 01, 2010
Accession Number
ADA523877

Entities

People

  • George R. Freeman
  • Joseph W. Carl

Organizations

  • Defense Acquisition University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acquisition
  • Air Force
  • Business Administration
  • Commerce
  • Configuration Management
  • Costs
  • Department Of Defense
  • Engineering
  • Engineers
  • Governments
  • Industrial Engineering
  • Investments
  • Life Cycles
  • Management Personnel
  • Military Acquisition
  • Systems Engineering
  • Weapon Systems

Fields of Study

  • Philosophy

Readers

  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Systems Analysis and Design