The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) now acquires systems that increasingly rely on software to deliver capabilities to the warfighter. These systems are more complex and costly than ever. Yet, DoD acquisition managers are challenged to operate in an environment of constrained budgets and faster delivery.

Information has become an essential asset supporting the operation of government and industrial organizations. Those organizations have increasing concerns about protecting information against cyber attacks that stem from criminal intentions or motivations and commercial motivations.

Software engineering organizations now are in an environment that is more uncertain—due in large part to the increasingly distributed nature of software development. How well those organizations navigate through this environment will determine their success or failure, and effective navigation requires a new view of risk analysis and management.

Leading software-engineering organizations emphasize faster delivery of products having exceptional quality and the flexibility to be easily adapted to meet changing customer needs. Delivering a software-reliant system that meets all of those business goals has proven to be difficult, witness the still-stubborn high percentage of products that fail in operation or do not meet expectations.