CAIV's Effect on System Attributes: An Exploratory Pilot Study

Abstract

Cost as an Independent Variable (CAIV) is a way to develop systems in which the cost for the system is fixed and all other system attributes are traded off to meet the fixed cost. The Government has required CAIV to be used on systems that have billions of dollars committed to them. Research up to this point in time reveals that CAIV is effective in saving money on the front end up system development. However, there is no research regarding other system attributes that might be affected by CAIV. This paper reviewed the current literature to generate a survey to explore how CAIV could affect other system attributes. The survey was given to professionals who have used CAIV to develop systems, and from the responses received, propositions are generated. These propositions identify areas that need to be researched to determine the usefulness and limitations of using CAIV in developing systems.