Reexamining Military Acquisition Reform: Are We There Yet?.

Reexamining Military Acquisition Reform: Are We There Yet?.
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2005
Genre:
ISBN:

The Department of Defense (DoD) has a long history of seeking improvements in the way it goes about buying new weapon systems. In the past two decades alone, DoD has mounted two distinct movements that each carried the title "Acquisition Reform" (AR).' In the 1980s, reform efforts focused on reducing "waste, fraud, and abuse" in the system. In the 1990s, the emphasis shifted toward trying to make the acquisition process more responsive, effective, and efficient i.e., "faster, better, cheaper." Initiatives launched in the 1990s to support the latter goals included legislative changes to allow for more streamlined procurements, reductions in internal paperwork and required reviews, greater use of commercial practices, and expanded attempts to use the private sector to do more of the jobs traditionally done by government. DoD also sought ways to make it easier and more attractive for companies that previously had never worked for the DoD to begin pursuing military contracts; this was seen as a way to allow the military to tap into the expanded creativity and innovative prowess in developing and applying new technology that had come to the fore in the private sector, particularly in the 1990s.

Reexamining Military Acquisition Reform

Reexamining Military Acquisition Reform
Author: Christopher H. Hanks
Publisher: Minnesota Historical Society
Total Pages: 172
Release: 2005
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780833037077

In the Department of Defense, 63 distinct acquisition reform (AR) initiatives were undertaken from 1989 to 2002. By looking at what the AR movement "was" in the 1990s (by describing the initiatives launched under its name) and by letting acquisition personnel describe in their own words how their work was affected by those initiatives, the authors seek to shed light on what the AR movement has and has not accomplished in terms of changing the way the acquisition process works.

Defense Acquisition Reform, 1960-2009

Defense Acquisition Reform, 1960-2009
Author: John Ronald Fox
Publisher: Government Printing Office
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2012-03-22
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780160866975

Center of Military History Publication 51-3-1. By J. Ronald Fox, et al. Discusses reform initiatives from 1960 to the present and concludes with prescriptions for future changes to the acquisition culture of the services, DoD, and industry.

Forging China's Military Might

Forging China's Military Might
Author: Tai Ming Cheung
Publisher: JHU Press
Total Pages: 302
Release: 2014-02-24
Genre: History
ISBN: 142141158X

Case studies look in detail at the Chinese space and missile industry.

Measuring the Statutory and Regulatory Constraints on Department of Defense Acquisition

Measuring the Statutory and Regulatory Constraints on Department of Defense Acquisition
Author: Jeffrey A. Drezner
Publisher: Rand Corporation
Total Pages: 113
Release: 2007
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0833041762

Managers of weapon system acquisition programs and their staffs have often voiced concerns about the burden of complying with federal statutes or regulations requiring certain business and oversight processes. The essence of the concerns is that program offices spend an inordinate amount of time complying with statutes and regulations that add little value, and that the regulatory burden translates into cost increases, schedule delays, and adverse effects on system performance. While many other studies have addressed this topic, few have succeeded in generating the empirical evidence needed to inform the policy debate. To fill this gap, NDRI developed a Web-based data collection tool to capture the program staff's estimates of hours spent on compliance efforts. A total of 316 individuals in seven DoD program offices were recruited to use the web tool to estimate biweekly the time they spent on regulatory compliance-related activities over the course of a year. While statutes and regulations do place constraints on program execution, the study found that program office staffs do not appear to spend a significant amount of their time complying with those statutes and regulations. Further, there is little evidence that program office compliance activities have adverse consequences for program outcomes.

Transforming US Army Supply Chains

Transforming US Army Supply Chains
Author: Greg Parlier
Publisher: Business Expert Press
Total Pages: 328
Release: 2011-03-15
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1606492365

This text offers a practical approach for understanding the US Army's extremely complex global logistics system, widely acknowledged as one of the largest in the world. The focus is on inventory management policy where prescriptions are illuminated through the prism of an enterprise supply chain analysis. Although Army aviation logistics examples are emphasized throughout, the fundamental issues and potential solutions are broadly applicable to other large-scale military and industrial supply chains as well. Following a summary of recent trends for background and context, a multi-stage conceptual model of the logistics structure is presented to segment and guide the effort. This multi-stage model is used to systematically analyze major organizational components of the supply chain, diagnose structural disorders and prescribe solutions. Integration challenges are addressed using cost-benefit perspectives which incorporate supply chain objectives of efficiency, resilience, and effectiveness. The design and evaluation section proposes an "analytical architecture" consisting of four complementary modeling approaches, collectively referred to as "dynamic strategic logistics planning", to enable a coordinated, enterprise approach for Army Logistics Transformation. An organizational construct is presented for an "engine for innovation" to accelerate and sustain continual improvement for Army logistics and supply chain management - a "Center for Innovation in Logistics Systems". Finally, strategic management challenges associated with enterprise integration and transformational change are addressed: organizational design; management information and decision support systems; strategic alignment for a learning organization; and workforce considerations including human capital investment needs. The text concludes with a relevant historical vignette and closes with a summary of expected benefits.

US Defense Politics

US Defense Politics
Author: Harvey M. Sapolsky
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 206
Release: 2008-08-06
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1135980373

This new textbook seeks to explain how US defense and national security policy is formulated and conducted. The focus is on the role of the President, Congress, political partisans, defense industries, lobbies, science, the media, and interest groups, including the military itself, in shaping policies. It examines the following key themes: US grand strategy; who joins America's military; how and why weapons are bought; the management of defense; public attitudes toward the military and casualties; the roles of the President and the Congress in controlling the military; the effects of 9/11 on security policy, homeland security, government reorganizations, and intra- and inter-service relations. The book shows how political and organizational interests determine US defense policy, and warns against the introduction of centralising reforms. In emphasizing the process of defense policy-making, rather than just the outcomes of that process, this book signals a departure from the style of many existing textbooks.

Optimizing U.S. Air Force and Department of Defense Review of Air Force Acquisition Programs

Optimizing U.S. Air Force and Department of Defense Review of Air Force Acquisition Programs
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 122
Release: 2009-07-29
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 030913918X

The Department of Defense (DOD) spends over $300 billion each year to develop, produce, field and sustain weapons systems (the U.S. Air Force over $100 billion per year). DOD and Air Force acquisitions programs often experience large cost overruns and schedule delays leading to a loss in confidence in the defense acquisition system and the people who work in it. Part of the DOD and Air Force response to these problems has been to increase the number of program and technical reviews that acquisition programs must undergo. This book looks specifically at the reviews that U.S. Air Force acquisition programs are required to undergo and poses a key question: Can changes in the number, content, or sequence of reviews help Air Force program managers more successfully execute their programs? This book concludes that, unless they do it better than they are now, Air Force and DOD attempts to address poor acquisition program performance with additional reviews will fail. This book makes five recommendations that together form a gold standard for conduct of reviews and if implemented and rigorously managed by Air Force and DOD acquisition executives can increase review effectiveness and efficiency. The bottom line is to help program managers successfully execute their programs.