Among the various issues identified and addressed in the November 2009 DoD Weapon System Acquisition Reform: Product Support Assessment was that of joint product support strategies. The report stated that “the issues that hamper our institutional sustainment processes are systemic. While military operations have become increasingly joint, sustainment processes remain overwhelmingly Service-centric…. DoD has emphasized joint requirements and joint strategies, yet few joint sustainment strategies exist. In spite of intense Human Capital improvement efforts, segments of the DoD workforce still make claims of insufficient product support integration knowledge and skills. While the current product support process generally meets military Service readiness standards, it does so while continuing to harbor inherent inefficiencies and higher-than-necessary costs.”

Do you concur with this assessment? If not, why not? If so, in the four years since the DoD Product Support Assessment report was issued, how well do you think we’re collectively doing in terms of resolving these issues? Are some organizations doing this better than others? If so, how – and why? What specific things could we as  life cycle logisticians and product support managers be doing better? Food for thought.