An approach to research and development effectiveness

The major portion of this paper consists of a description of the rationale and use of RDE (Research and Development Effectiveness), a computerized planning program developed inhouse and designed to utilize analytical techniques in the management of R & D resources in the Air Force Flight Dynamics Laboratory, RTD, AFSC. For the three years (including this year) that the program has run, it has been to a degree experimental in that changes have been made to the measure of effectiveness model during the program evolution. Further changes at this time are not contemplated, so that next year time for preparation of input data will be markedly decreased. This will be possible by merely requiring the marking up of already prepared input plots rather than constructing entirely new ones. The capability to achieve detailed insights into the program at short notice has given rise to the initiation of development of an overall Management Information System for the Laboratory, which will complement the RDE program by providing past resource consumption trend data to key into the planning data obtained from the RDE program.