DONE THAT BEEN THERE,


Want a HIGH return?


Invest in more business education for PMs, and reap returns in the short term (good products at an appropriate price) and long (repaired credibility for defense acquisition).


by Robert F. Mortlock, Col., USA (Ret.) “I don’t care how much it costs, we need it now!”


At the height of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghani- stan, getting warfighters the capabilities


they


needed as rapidly as possible was always the top priority for the defense acquisition community—and who could argue against it? Delivering effective, suitable warfighting equipment as fast as possible was the focus—often at the long-term expense, literally, of the services’ and DOD’s budgets.


Maintaining the focus on urgent needs was possible because of the availability and amount of overseas contin- gency operations funding. Speed of delivery was a higher priority than total ownership (life cycle) costs, despite the significant impact that speed had on long-term operation and maintenance accounts. Fast-forward a few years, and the services faced declining base budgets, sequestration and the first of three iterations of the Better Buying Power initiative, emphasizing the importance of making wise financial investments with limits on planned funding.


It was a dual reality: one in which money was no object and one in which money was the overriding concern. You just had to remember in which reality you were operating, or you could find yourself burned. Tis dilemma of the past decade will continue well into the future for many acquisition program managers (PMs).


Te good news is that the training and education of acqui- sition PMs, and of the Defense Acquisition Workforce in general, has never been better. PMs have gained defense acquisition and procurement acumen based on both edu- cation and experience. PMs and program executive officers (PEOs) have defined criteria for education, training and experience, with certification requirements that ensure their pedigree to lead organizations and programs. But just as conditions and priorities change, the demands for acquisition knowledge do, too. Tere needs to be a con- tinual review of PMs’ education requirements to ensure that they have the tools necessary to lead ever more com- plex DOD programs in challenging fiscal environments. Today’s emphasis on affordability will only grow more important with the continuing uncertainty of funding,


ASC.ARMY.MIL 93


COMMENTARY


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