“… The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is responsible for, among other things, assisting Congress in its oversight of the executive branch, including assessing federal agencies’ management of information technology (IT) systems. In prior audits, GAO has reported that federal agencies faced challenges in developing, implementing, and maintaining their IT investments. All too frequently, agency IT programs have incurred cost overruns and schedule slippages while contributing little to mission-related outcomes. Accordingly, in February 2015, GAO added the government’s management of IT acquisitions and operations on its list of high-risk programs…”
“This guide has been developed with the assistance of many knowledgeable specialists in the field of Agile and other incremental software development methods to aid federal agencies, departments, and auditors in assessing an organization’s readiness to adopt Agile methods.”
“The best practices in this guide are not comprehensive; that is, they are presented as high-level concepts of software development, contracting, and program management that highlight the aspects of Agile development throughout a program’s life cycle and address key risks to an organization, program, or team without prescriptive ‘how to’ steps…”
“GAO plans to periodically update this exposure draft based on users’ experience and comments. Comments and suggestions from experienced users and knowledgeable specialists regarding the application of Agile principles are welcome…” Read the full guide here.
Source: Agile Assessment Guide – September 2020. GAO.
