Software Project Management for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Spectrum Collaboration Challenge

Abstract

Development and management of the Colosseum, the wireless communications research test bed for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Spectrum Collaboration Challenge (SC2),was a complex undertaking. With its world-class expertise in communication systems and experience in information technology infrastructure, the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory(APL) was well positioned to design, host, and maintain the Colosseum on its Laurel, Maryland, campus from 2016 to 2019. The effort required close coordination among members of the APL team and between APL and DARPA. To effectively and efficiently manage the design and maintenance of the Colosseum, APL applied tested project management tools and techniques, a development and operations approach, and an agile framework. This article focuses on the early planning and initial development efforts and documents the project management attributes, including the composition of the APL team as well as the software tools, that contributed to the success of the effort.