Presented by Appian

A modernization project should produce evidence of progress before its final milestone. Jason Adolf, Senior Vice President, Public Sector Customer Success Organization, Appian, says one of the strongest signals is straightforward: real users have begun using a capability and providing feedback that shapes the next release.

In a Fed Gov Today Spotlight recorded at Appian Government, Adolf explains how delivering useful software in increments creates the conditions for continued improvement. His approach connects development practices with acquisition flexibility, shared resources, and realistic assessments of operational risk.

Traditional projects often separated development from operations. An organization would build a system, deploy it, and then maintain it for several years. Adolf argues that this pattern can leave agencies with another legacy application before the contract ends.

A more useful model treats improvement as ongoing work. Initial delivery gives users something they can use, while later increments respond to experience, changing needs, and new capabilities.

That model also changes how agencies should think about acquisition. Adolf says contracts need enough flexibility to support adjustments throughout delivery. A rigid list of requirements established at the beginning may not reflect what the organization learns as people start using the system.

Policy changes can add pressure. Agencies may need to respond quickly, making the ability to redirect work especially valuable. If the contract does not accommodate change, the organization can struggle even when its technology team understands what must happen.

Adolf describes estimating and organizing work around sprints or delivery increments. Teams build a portion of the capability, evaluate what happened, and adjust the next portion. The structure provides a way to manage progress without assuming that every detail will remain fixed.

Government and industry both have responsibilities in making that approach work. Adolf notes that some customers have limited recent experience with enterprise modernization. Partners should help explain the delivery model and work with program teams and contracting officers to support it.

Shared centers of excellence offer another way to reduce fragmentation. Instead of each program creating its own separate environment, programs can access common services and expertise. Adolf points to large customers, including the Army and VA, as examples of organizations centralizing their work with Appian.

These shared resources can support early prototyping and help programs begin with a stronger foundation. They also create opportunities to establish common practices across projects.

Moving from a prototype to mission use introduces a different question: how confident is the organization that the capability will perform across a broader set of conditions? Adolf emphasizes evaluating risk, including edge cases that may not appear in a controlled demonstration.

Success in a sandbox does not automatically establish readiness for a larger deployment. Teams must understand what changes when the user base, complexity, or operational consequences increase.

His advice connects planning with adaptability. Agencies benefit from deliberate choices about platforms and shared services, but those choices should support learning. Usable increments, user feedback, flexible acquisition, and realistic risk assessment can help organizations move beyond pilots while keeping software aligned with the mission as requirements and technology evolve.

3 Key Takeaways

• Measure progress through usable capabilities and feedback from actual users.
• Contracts and delivery plans should allow continued improvement as needs change.
• Scaling a prototype requires assessing operational risk and conditions beyond the sandbox.