Archives
Recent
defense acquisitions
Under Secretary of Defense for AT&L, Mr. Frank Kendall released the long-awaited revision to the defense department’s signature acquisition reform memorandum, Better Buying Power (BBP): “Implementation Directive for Better Buying Power 2.0 – Achieving Greater Efficiency and Productivity in Defense
. . . Read more
Date:
5/20/2013
In the perfect defense acquisition world, requirements would be well-defined and reasonable, RFPs clearly written, program cost and schedule would be sensible and attainable, the necessary technologies would have a high readiness level and the end product would be affordable, effective and sustainable.
. . . Read more
Date:
4/3/2013
Even as the British Defense Staff and the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff held an unusual meeting in Washington last week to develop a common strategic vision, back home the U.K.’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) was moving forward with plans to outsource the management of its procurement and support functions.
. . . Read more
Date:
4/1/2013
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released its 11th annual assessment of major defense acquisition programs last week, reporting that the long-term cost of the programs had declined $152 billion between 2011 and 2012. Most of the projected savings resulted from program cancellations and
. . . Read more
Date:
4/1/2013
I don’t believe that reducing defense spending will necessarily make the Department of Defense (DoD) more innovative, as some have claimed. DoD’s problem is not strategic or operational and the answer cannot be found in clever organizational designs or new technologies. The Pentagon’s challenge
. . . Read more
Date:
3/20/2013
Trying to guide, direct or reform the Pentagon’s acquisition system would make steering the Titanic appear easy. There have been many attempts in the past and hundreds of studies, blue ribbon panels and commissions that have recommended ways of improving the system. There has been more oversight
. . . Read more
Date:
11/15/2012
There has been much written about the lessons learned from recent conflicts regarding how U.S. forces need to be organized, trained and equipped. Much less has been written about the critical lessons learned regarding the needed reforms for the Pentagon’s acquisition and logistics systems. One
. . . Read more
Date:
10/11/2012
Historically the focus of the defense acquisition and sustainment system has swung pendulum-like between two policy objectives. At one end of the arc, the goal is effectiveness: insuring that the military gets the best equipment and support available as rapidly as possible even if this means choosing
. . . Read more
Date:
10/5/2012
One of the few ways to get the media’s attention in Washington is to claim that a government program is going to be more expensive than was originally projected. The bigger the number, the bigger the headline and the greater the feigned outrage on Capitol Hill. This is particularly true for major
. . . Read more
Date:
7/27/2012
According to reports by Bloomberg’s Tony Capaccio and Defense News’ Sean Riley, the Defense Department’s Inspector General (IG) has concluded that the Pentagon’s efforts to deploy six massive enterprise resource planning (ERP) software programs are way over budget and years behind
. . . Read more
Date:
7/24/2012
The F-35 fighter program is making steady progress towards fielding the best tactical aircraft ever built. You'd never know that, though, to listen to the way Pentagon managers describe it. Having aborted the quick production ramp-up required to minimize costs, they insist on citing cost projections
. . . Read more
Date:
3/26/2012
Over the past year, the credibility of the Department of Defense’s (DoD) acquisition system has been shaken repeatedly by disputes regarding the costs associated with a wide range of programs. First there was the report that the life cycle costs for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter -- that is the costs
. . . Read more
Date:
3/22/2012
On Monday, the House Armed Services Committee’s (HASC) Panel on Business Challenges within the Defense Industry released a report titled, not surprisingly, Challenges to Doing Business with the Department of Defense. Based on extensive hearings, discussions with experts and industry roundtables,
. . . Read more
Date:
3/21/2012
The Holy Grail of defense acquisition reform is a methodology, system, approach -- something -- that will enable the Department of Defense to procure equipment, platforms and services of quality relatively cheaply and quickly. Over the recent decades, DoD has careened from one fashion to another
. . . Read more
Date:
3/8/2012
There has been a lot of depressing news of late about defense budget cuts, terminated procurements, weapons systems that fail to perform as required and government ineptitude in overseeing competitions and writing contracts. So it is nice to be able to write about what looks to be a good news story.
. . . Read more
Date:
3/7/2012
The leadership in the Department of Defense (DoD) has succumbed to a new religion. This one is called affordability. The high priests of this new religion in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and particularly in Acquisition, Technology and Logistics have been writing a new catechism that directs
. . . Read more
Date:
10/26/2011
Although you would not know it from the current political debate in Washington on federal spending, the government does try to save money. One way of reducing costs is by adopting commercial practices and standards. Another way is by buying commercial products and systems.
The Department of
. . . Read more
Date:
10/13/2011
Every lover of old movies knows of Inspector Harry Callahan, the world-weary detective made famous by Clint Eastwood in a series of classic 1970s films. Harry was not only a tough guy and deadly with his massive handgun but a practical philosopher. In the 1973 movie Magnum Force, Harry delivers
. . . Read more
Date:
9/13/2011
Over the past two decades, the list of major defense acquisition programs that have been cancelled after years of development or pushed to production only to have their numbers cut has become distressingly long. It doesn’t matter which service is sponsoring the effort or which contractor is involved.
. . . Read more
Date:
8/23/2011
The way the Pentagon buys weapons isn't just broke, it's baroque -- way too complicated to function efficiently. If you doubt that, check out this chart used by the Defense
. . . Read more
Date:
1/4/2011
In the general rush to cut the budget deficit, much ink has been spilled over various schemes to reduce the size and sophistication of the U.S. military. The most well-publicized of these proposals, that of the deficit commission, called for cutting a trillion dollars from defense over the next
. . . Read more
Date:
1/3/2011
On June 28, the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, Dr. Ashton Carter held a convocation for defense industry leaders. The subject was restoring affordability and productivity in defense acquisition. The Under Secretary began by telling his audience that the era
. . . Read more
Date:
7/12/2010