LOOKING BACK, MOVING ON


MANY THANKS


With former ASA(ALT) Dr. Bruce D. Jette. Spisak said “thanks to all those senior leaders who have given me and the team the trust and latitude to do what’s right for the acquisition community and professionals.”


him and his work ethic can’t say anything negative about him. He has been there for me for most of the ride and I can’t thank him enough. Tere have been a lot of great teammates along the way, both in the Army and our sister services, who have made a huge difference and always tried to put others first: Joan Sable, Larry Israel, Andy Clements, Bill Boruff, Jack Kendall, Steve Karl, Kelly Terry, Tammy Hughes, Karl Donerson, Dewight Wills and Anita Odom to name a few. And I have to say thanks to all those senior leaders who have given me and the team the trust and lati- tude to do what’s right for the acquisition


community and professionals. Retired Lt. Gen. Joe Yakovac, who gave me my first big break, and the Hon. Claude M. Bolton Jr. are by far the most important to mention.


I’ve been able to make a difference for individual professionals and that will always be the great highlight of my career.


100 Army AL&T Magazine Summer 2021


I’ve been gratified to watch the transfor- mation of not just the Army, but also the Army acquisition community, over the course of my career. I have seen a tremen- dous shift. When I started in this business it was such a compliance culture. When it came to the laws and the regulations and the policies and the rules, there was a sense of, if there’s not somewhere in there that says you’re allowed to do something, then you’re not allowed to do it. Today we’ve turned that on its head. Unless the rules say you can’t do it, then there’s an opportunity to try something creative and innovative. And if it works, great. If it doesn’t, try something else. We have used our experience and our creativity to find incredible innovative solutions of some of our most difficult problems.


While I'm quite sentimental about the idea of leaving an organization I’ve been in charge of for a long time and retiring


after 35 years, I'm also quite hopeful. I see a bright future for USAASC, the DACM Office and the acquisition community, because I truly believe that people are looking at problems the way we need to.


We recognize this fast-changing environ- ment with near-peer competitors. We can’t be complacent with solving problems in the same old way. We have to be cogni- zant that tough problems require unique and creative solutions. So while it’s going to continue to be a challenging environ- ment, I'm very optimistic that the Army and the acquisition community are ready to work together, face the challenges and problems, and solve them and operate well in that environment. I'm also quite comfortable knowing that the organiza- tion that I'm going to leave behind, the U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center is ready to tackle those challenges. I can’t say I’ll miss the everyday work and grind, but I will miss being a part of the U.S. Army and the great men and women who I’ve had the privilege to work with along the way, so many wonderful and dedicated Soldiers, civilians and industry partners. My thanks to you all.


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