The newly-published May-June 2022 edition of Defense Acquisition Magazine is now available online – for your reading pleasure, your professional development, and of course for most of us, for both! This brand-new issue is chock full of interesting, engaging, and timely articles, including:

• Systems Engineering and Life Cycle Sustainment: The Need to Synchronize - All program office functional areas—especially the main “cogs” of Engineering and Technical Management and Life Cycle Logistics—must work together to design, develop, deliver, and sustain weapon systems.
• Commercial Paths for Acquiring Innovative Technologies - Commercial Solutions Openings (CSOs) increasingly are used by DoD to fulfill a wide range of needs with innovative, advanced technology from the private sector, a use that is likely to increase due to recent changes in law.
• An Acquisition Speed Manifesto - DoD can learn valuable speed lessons from the commercial sector. Here is a proposed, new, accelerated path forward for DoD.
• Is It Time for the Iron Square? - The old critical triangle of cost, performance, and speed needs a fourth element: security must be strengthened to protect our innovations from adversaries.
• Data Rights Marking Sleuths - A new computer software tool is available to search and identify improper data rights markings. Here are some cases and clues involving data rights markings delivered to DoD.
• Better Program Management Through Digital Engineering - There are ways to unite Digital Engineering Strategy with the Adaptive Acquisition Framework for better management of software-intensive major capability acquisitions and other acquisition pathways.
• MDAP/MAIS Program Manager Changes​
• 2021 Defense Acquisition Workforce Awards (Including Packard Awards for Acquisition Excellence)

Permit me to also take a moment to highly recommend reading through this entire issue, in particular the cover article entitled “Systems Engineering and Life Cycle Sustainment: The Need to Synchronize” -- a vitally important interdisciplinary topic that all life cycle logisticians, systems engineers, and other defense acquisition workforce members would benefit from reading about.

For those who may not be familiar with this invaluable resource, Defense Acquisition is a bimonthly magazine published by DAU Press for senior military personnel, civilians, defense contractors, and defense industry professionals in the defense acquisition and sustainment workforce.