U.S. Government and DoD senior leaders have repeatedly emphasized the importance of accelerating the defense acquisition process to develop and field the capabilities our U.S. warfighters need. In parallel, the … USG’s Conventional Arms Transfer (CAT) Policy … – initially published in April 2018 – has several ongoing Lines of Effort (LOEs) that focus on accomplishing a related objective, …
DAU’s International Acquisition & Exportability (IA&E) learning content is designed to address the needs of both specialists and generalists in the Defense Acquisition Workforce – as well as inform other government and industry stakeholders -- all of whom play key roles in DoD’s IA&E activities. This blog focuses on how DAU is attempting to help generalists succeed in the IA&E…
A lot of media reporting on defense in recent months has once again focused on how the U.S. should reform what is often called a “broken” defense acquisition system. For those of us who have been in the defense acquisition profession for awhile (since April 1980 for me), the latest rounds of pronouncements on how to “fix” the problems – real or perceived – that are encountered by today’s …
One of the best aspects of being a DAU Professor is that you have actually have time for contemplation and reflection. Conversely, when we engage with DoD acquisition workforce members – both in resident classes and during Mission Assistance visits, calls, and e-mail exchanges – they always tell us how time constrained they are due to the relentless pace of their daily work. While I left …
Emphasis on the importance of “critical thinking” in defense acquisition efforts has increased markedly over the past few years. As USD(AT&L) mentioned in his recent article in Defense AT&L Magazine , “what really matters in defense acquisition is our people and their professionalism and leadership”. Is critical thinking really that important and, if so, how should DAW members…
In October 2023, I published a blog that assessed how Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) provisions might impact future … Australia – UK – US (AUKUS) Partnership … cooperation. Now that the final version of the FY2024 NDAA enacted in December 2023 is being implemented by the National Security Council (NSC) staff, the Department of State (DoS), and the Department of …
The White House published a statement on the … AUKUS … defense acquisition partnership on April 5th. For those who are unfamiliar with the latest instantiation of defense acquisition cooperation among these three close allies, AUKUS was announced in September 2021. At that time all three heads of government agreed to establish an optimal pathway for an Australian conventionally-armed, …
The Chairman of the Joint Requirements Oversight Council (JROC) published a Memo establishing new … Joint Capability Integration and Development System (JCIDS) requirements for building defense exportability … on April 15, 2019 (JROCM 025-19). This JROCM establishes three new defense exportability policy principles and practices that will be implemented from this point onward in the DoD JCIDS …
Over the past few years, we have experienced an increasing trend regarding DoD Component acquisition organizations seeking Defense Acquisition University (DAU) Mission Assistance (MA) support for complex DoD international program efforts. … This blog provides an overview of how routine DoD international programs differ from complex ones and explores why we believe DoD Component acquisition …
One of the most enjoyable aspects of supporting the DoD Acquisition Workforce as a DAU professor is being asked to help respond to thought-provoking questions from members who are grappling with tough challenges. I was recently asked to participate in a discussion of the advantages – and potential pitfalls – of using acquisition Best Practices in the workplace as part of a DAU Mission Assistance …