From the Army Acquisition Executive Focus on Ground Combat Systems (GCS) and ASAALT Welcome and Introduction Combat Support and Combat Service Support (CS&CSS)
O T
n behalf of the Army Acquisition Corps and the greater acquisition workforce, I would like to take this opportunity to extend my
(AL&T) community. I have been reading this award- winning publication for many years and find it to be a valuable resource. With this issue, I would like to share a few things that are uppermost in my mind as I take on my new leadership duties.
At the outset, let me state that I am ready to contribute experience, dedication to duty, and ethical discipline during my tenure as the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology (ASAALT). I am deeply honored by the trust the President of the United States placed in me by nominating me to serve as the ASAALT; by the confirmation of my nomination by the U.S. Senate, particularly members of the Senate Armed Services Committee; and by the confidence placed in me by the Secretary of the Army.
sincere congratulations to Frank J. Anderson Jr. on his recent retirement as Defense Acquisition Univer- sity (DAU) President. Frank has been a personal friend since his days as a bright, energetic, and very talented Air Force general officer. I greatly enjoyed the oppor- tunity to serve with him on active duty and later as a member of the DAU Board of Visitors. Frank will always be remembered for transforming a miscella- neous consortium of service schools, including the Defense Systems Management College, into an award-winning, internationally recog- nized corporate university. He also implemented the Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics (AT&L) Performance Learning Model that now provides continuous learning assets well beyond the classroom to the more than 130,000 Defense Acquisition Workforce members. It is clear that Frank’s lasting legacy is his great success in significantly expanding educational opportunities and the resulting tremendous increase in our workforce’s professionalism and capability.
his column is an excellent way for me to communicate on a regular basis with the Army’s Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology
It is a great privilege for me to be given this opportunity to lead you, the dedicated professionals of the Army’s 41,000-member AL&T Workforce, a community charged with equipping and sustaining the world’s most capable, powerful, and respected Army. It is you, the men and women of the Army AL&T community—military and civilian—who will see that policies get implemented, that systems are procured and fielded with the latest technology, and that our Soldiers maintain their decisive edge for current and future expeditionary operations.
As background, I have been in the AL&T business for 43 years. I served 34 years on active duty as an Army officer, both in peacetime and combat. My first acquisition job was as a member of the source selection team for what was then called SAM-D (Surface-to-Air Missile, Development)—now the Patriot missile system. My most recent technology job was chairing the Board on Army Science and Technology for the National Academies and the National Research Council.
The importance of a well-educated, appropriately sized cadre of acquisition professionals with the right skills and training to suc- cessfully perform their jobs cannot be overstated. Over the last two decades, the acquisition workforce suffered a sharp reduction in personnel and an increase in workload that contributed to the inability to effectively apply remaining critical skills. That trend is being reversed! With assistance from Congress and the Office of the Secretary of Defense, we have begun to rebuild our ranks and have plans in place to grow the acquisition workforce and hire a bench of technically trained personnel, including cost estimators, systems engineers, and quality assurance specialists. With these hiring initiatives on track, I am now focusing my energies on leading the transformation of Army acquisition to improve management and execution of the acquisition process from start to finish, in close collaboration with our stakeholders, including Congress and our defense industry partners. Join me in this effort! I urge you to summon the courage to challenge the status quo. “No” is a perfectly acceptable answer. We must each have the moral courage to stand and speak the truth, or true transformation will not be achieved.
In 1991, I was selected as the first director of the U.S. Army Acquisition Corps, and I became convinced that the key to program management success is people. I still believe that today. I also
To ensure an efficient and effective acquisition system, we are guided in our efforts by the Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act of 2009, which was designed to help put major defense acquisition programs on a sound footing from the outset by addressing program shortcomings in early acquisition phases. Additionally, we are undertaking a far-reaching set of reforms and studies, including the Value Task Force established by the Under Secretary of Defense for AT&L, the Army Acquisition Study chartered by the Secretary of the
believe that technology makes a difference on the battlefield. For this reason, the interaction between the technologist and the warfighter must be virtually continuous. Our leadership must aggressively pursue nnovative solutions and stimulate an information
exchange among warfighters, industry, academia, and Army technologists. I also believe that logistics demands intensive management and close cooperation between operational forces and the sustaining base.
major lines of effort:
I am pleased that this issue of Army AL&T Magazine is dedicated to joint systems and equipment. In the last 8 years, we have seen all services working together to support successful combat, peacekeeping, and humanitarian operations. Our U.S. military is the finest in the world, in part, because our leaders and service members have embraced joint warfighting. For example, in response to deadly improvised explosive devices in Iraq and Afghanistan, it took just 10 months for the Army and the U.S. Marine Corps to define requirements, procure, and field the Mine Resistant Ambushed Protected vehicle to significantly enhance force protection.
• Meet our force’s needs through Army priorities and the Army Force Generation (ARFORGEN) model. It is essential that we embrace ARFORGEN as a key driver to inform our moderniza- tion investment decisions, as we continue to support ongoing
The operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and effectively support today to manage our acquisition systems, including our joint systems, very carefully. The Army must obtain maximum value for i The Army modernizes for our Soldiers. The Army’s objective is to hat any problems are identified t the earliest possible stage so
se are very hard times economically, so it’s e en more important responsible drawdown and reset.
ts investment. We must ensure that our prog ams are healthy and t develop and field a versatile and affordable mix of the best equipment program adjustments can be made to keep them healthy. By building more discipline, oversight, and transparency into the process, we are better able to provide services, deliver mature t absolute moral responsibility to ensure our Soldiers have the best equire and deserve.
available to allow Soldiers and units to succeed in both today’s and tomorrow’s full-spectrum operations. In addition to our statutory responsibilities, we in the Army acquisition community have an
echnologies, and rapidly procure the equipment that our Soldiers r equipment in sufficient quantities, so that they always have a
In going about your daily work, I ask that you do so with integrity, honor, and courage. These qualities are of overriding importance in successful enterprises. The honor and integrity to do what is right for our programs and, ultimately, our Soldiers, is only matched, in my mind, by the courage to stand and speak the truth because it is your responsibility to do so.
distinct and significant advantage in any fight. This responsibility requires us to constantly explore new technologies, conduct exhaustive testing and experimentation, and never be afraid to ask ourselves if every aspect of our equipping programs can with- stand the scrutiny of rigorous cost-benefit analyses.
I look forward to working with you to keep the Army strong, up-to- date, efficient, and effective.
This issue of Army AL&T Magazine showcases two of our program executive offices (PEOs): PEO GCS and PEO CS&CSS. It is clear that both PEOs have a critical role in executing the Army’s Moderniza- tion Strategy and transforming our acquisition capabilities to meet current and future warfighter needs. The articles that follow provide valuable insights into this transformation and the ways these PEOs are addressing their many challenges and opportunities.
Dr. Malcolm Ross O’Neill Army Acquisition Executive
Dr. Malcolm Ross O’Neill Army Acquisition Executive
• Developing and fielding new capabilities. We must leverage technologies harvested from the Army’s science and technology program and shorten the time between requirement identification and solution delivery.
• Continuously modernize equipment to meet current and future capabilities needs through procurement of upgraded capabilities, recapitalization, and divestment. In conjunction with our strategic partners, we must validate and implement affordable capability portfolio strategies for selected equipment fleets and capitalize on technology-based initiatives.
Army, and other critical initiatives and improvement opportunities generated from within our community. Our ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and the projections of a continued, complex operational environment demand more agile, innovative, and streamlined processes and institutions, including how we acquire goods and services.
We are also guided in our important work b the i Army Modernization Strategy, which focuses on three
Draft
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96
