Proceedings of the Annual Acquisition Research Symposium (2nd), Acquisition Research: The Foundation for Innovation, Held in Monterey, California on 18-19 May 2005

摘要

Creating a more efficient acquisition system is a top priority for the Department of Defense (DoD). High-quality research in the area of acquisitions is necessary to catalyze positive and lasting changes to improve the performance of the acquisition process, reduce acquisition cycle times, and reduce the costs of DoD acquisitions-even as it must confront rapidly changing external and internal environments. Earlier attempts at acquisition reform have made some progress, but there is still much room for improvement. Multiple (and sometimes competing) pressures stress the resources of the Department of Defense, the acquisition process, and acquisition workforce; these pressures include: budget constraints, a changing threat environment, technological innovations, force transformation, human-capital management, a shrinking industrial base, and the high ethical standards required of government employees. Change is often resisted out of fear of the unknown; however, if the DoD does not make substantial changes to meet budgetary pressures and other external drivers, the department will find it increasingly difficult to modernize and transform its forces to face the evolving global threats. Small investments in acquisition research (out of the total annual expenditures of over $200 Billion on R&D, production and support) have the potential to yield significant benefits. This paper examines broad trends that impact the DoD's acquisition system and presents a detailed research agenda to guide future projects; such projects will ultimately improve performance, reduce costs, speed up delivery time, and position the Department of Defense to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Acquisition research objectives have been categorized into 11 major areas; each objective targets one or more of the overarching goals of improving performance, reducing cycle time, and reducing costs.