ACAP Data Collection and Management 3

Question 1

What is the 'Should-Cost' review concept in Army acquisition?

Accepted Answer

A government-led analysis to identify what a program should cost if managed efficiently, used to challenge contractor proposals

Answer

Should-Cost reviews challenge baseline assumptions and inefficiencies to determine the achievable cost under optimal management, and are used to negotiate better contract prices.

Question 2

Which software metric is collected under CSDR requirements to help estimate future software development costs?

Accepted Answer

Source Lines of Code (SLOC) and equivalent SLOC (ESLOC)

Answer

SLOC and ESLOC quantify the size of the software product, which is the primary technical driver used in software cost estimating relationships.

Question 3

What is the 'floor price' concept related to data quality in Army cost analysis?

Accepted Answer

The minimum credible cost below which an estimate is considered unrealistically optimistic given historical program performance

Answer

Cost analysts establish a floor to sanity-check estimates against historical data, flagging any estimate that falls implausibly below what similar programs have actually cost.

Question 4

In Army cost data management, what is a 'data anomaly' and how should it be handled?

Accepted Answer

A data point that deviates significantly from the expected pattern due to special circumstances; it should be investigated, documented, and potentially excluded or separately analyzed

Answer

Anomalies may reflect unique program events rather than typical cost behavior, so they must be understood before deciding whether to include them in analysis or treat them separately.

Question 5

What is the purpose of a 'cost data normalization worksheet' in Army cost analysis?

Accepted Answer

To document all adjustments made to raw historical data, ensuring transparency and reproducibility of the normalization process

Answer

The worksheet creates an auditable trail showing exactly what adjustments were made and why, allowing reviewers to verify or challenge the normalized data used in CER development.

ACAP - Army Cost Analysis Position Practice Test

ACAP - Army Cost Analysis Position Practice Test

ACAP Data Collection and Management 3