Lori Vaughan

Kathy Bradford, Systems Engineer and Lori Vaughan, Cost Engineer

Kathy Bradford, Systems Engineer and Lori Vaughan, Cost Engineer, Northrop Grumman Mission Systems Office of Cost Estimation

Written by Kathy Bradford and Lori Vaughan of Northrop Grumman Mission Systems, this article details how they were able to deconstruct a project with a high COTS content, to get their estimate within 2%, developing a new way of modeling COTS for future projects along the way.

Lori Vaughan : SEER-SEM Power User

When we decided to profile a SEER-SEM Power User, a familiar face from down the street came to mind immediately -- Lori Vaughan of Northrop Grumman Mission Systems in Redondo Beach, California (at the time of this interview, the organization was TRW Systems & Information Technology Group Office of Cost Estimation).

Lori has been using SEER-SEM since 1997, on both space flight and ground software.After using the tool for about six months, she took the SEER Software Estimation Workshop and found it valuable to have had prior experience with the tool, as she was able to maximize what she learned in class."I was already familiar with the model, so I was able to ask better questions, especially ones that were particular to my environment."

In talking with Lori, we learned that her organization has different "Universities" within the training organization, one of them being a "Cost Engineering University.""We teach a one-day cost estimation class on-site, an 18 hour practitioners course, and a three hour management course on parametrics using models like SEER-SEM," Lori said."Various people from different departments are included in the training from proposal managers, to people who do data collection, to the pricing department."Lori noted that parametric methodology is increasingly accepted within the TRW culture as well as within the culture of their customers."It's becoming easier to work with customers, as they acquire an acceptance of these methods."

Although Lori uses more than one estimating tool, she says, "SEER spoils you in terms of reporting and interface.I also really like the flex report feature.When I'm sitting down with a proposal manager, I can encapsulate what they want to know into an Excel workbook easily.Set a Reference is great when creating your own flex report; the milestone percentages help you figure out what's happening over the different development methods."She did also note something that makes her a little nuts as well: "One of the things that drives me crazy is, when copying a report into Excel, I need to take that extra step to parse the columns."Her mind was at ease when we explained how that feature will be improved in the next version of SEER-SEM.Lori also shared some kind words when we asked about the technical support she's received from us."It's so helpful.I can get really straightforward answers, from conceptual handholding, to a crash course in SEER.I've been sitting with a project manager at times, and even though I didn't have all the answers, I just pick up the phone and call you guys and I say, 'Hi, this is Lori, I need help!' and the person on the other end knows me. It's a great feeling."
...
In closing, Lori told us she has a very high comfort level with the model.

Lori Vaughan, Cost Engineer