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What is a CONOPS anyway?

Avoiding Brooks law: All major mistakes are

made on the first day of the project!

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Topics

jMotivation

j Recipe for a CONOPS

- The intended use of the system

- The Actors

- Scenarios

- Operational RequirementsjWhere the CONOPS fit into the System Engineering Process

j How to create the CONOPS

j CONOPS heuristics

j CONOPS qualification

j

Discussion and Questions

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Motivation

jInitiate Conceptual Integrity

- I will contend that conceptual integrity is the most important

consideration in system design .. Fred Brooks

jDiscover the clients aspirations, needs, conditions, and

ideas that will influence the design of the system

jControl customer expectations early

jDefine operational performance measures

j

Baseline for factors / impact analysisjInvoke the clients reflective loop

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Recipe for a CONOPS

The CONOPS is a model of function and behavior

Intended

Use Operational

Requirements

Actors

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Intended use of the system

jClients goals for the system

jWhy would a person use the system?

j

What are the

Business processes that thesystem supports

jInnate (problem invariant) vs. artifacts of

technologyjHow will system earn a profit (why build it?)

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The Actors

Users

Client

People who support

the system

People who areaffected by the

system

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Scenarios (system engineering, not OOA)

jScience fiction story

jIllustrates solution processes & system participation

jSequential or concurrent

jIn problem / usage domain terms

jInteraction of users & environment with the solution or

system

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Operational Requirements

Scenario

Behavioral Requirements

FunctionalRequirements

FunctionalRequirements

Functional

RequirementsConstraintRequirements

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Where the CONOPS fits in

Operational Concept Graphic

Operational Node Connectivity Diagram

Operational Information Exchange Matrix

C4ISR Operational View Essential & Supporting Products

CONOPS

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How to create the CONOPS

Establish Goals

Collect Facts

Induce Concepts

Determine Needs

State the Problem

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How to create the CONOPS continued

Establish

Goals

State the

Problem

Collect

Facts

Induce

Concepts

Determine

Needs

Intended

UseActors Scenarios

Operational

Requirements

Client

Users Define

Refine

Define

Representative

General

Process

Elaborate

Categories

Specifics

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CONOPS Heuristics

j Know the business and how it earns profit

j Users as an integral part of the CONOPS team

j Beware of user inputs

j Bring order to chaos (Conceptualize!!)- Unique and important performance requirements which will shape system design

- Major business concepts which will affect system design

- Attitude toward initial budget and its influence on structure of system

- Implications of change / growth on long range performance of system

- Genius is in finding and discarding irrelevant or trivial information

j Take your time and play with the problem

j Dont just think happy path

j Investigate alternative concepts with critical thinking

j Seek judgment & experience to organize instead of paralyzejMaintain conceptual integrity

j Verify and validate the CONOPS

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CONOPS Qualification

Presentations

(Reviews)

ExecutableModels

Pilots &

Prototypes

The customer is not always right, but must always think so

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Discussions and questions

j Lets talk

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Backup Slide: Architecture, bloody architecture

jArchitecture The structure or schematic misnomer- An architecture description is a representation, as of a current

or future point in time, of a defined domain in terms of its

component parts, what those parts do, how the parts relate to

each other, and the rules and constraints under which the

parts function. (C4ISR)

jArchitecture The original meaning- The user interface (conceptual and physical) (Pea)

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Discussion Question A

Why is experience essential to the

successful derivation of a Conops?

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Discussion Question B

How can users mislead a Conops

effort?

How can management mislead a

Conops effort?

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Discussion Question C

What is the difference between a

functional operational requirement

and a functional design requirement?

What is the difference between a

functional operational requirement

and system functional requirement?