FORT BELVOIR, Va. — Leaders across the DOD came together to celebrate innovation in acquisition with two major honors at the 2024 Defense Acquisition Awards, held Dec. 11, 2024, at the Defense Acquisition University.
The annual awards, which encompass 23 categories, celebrate the exceptional contributions of individuals and teams who advance the National Defense Strategy and uphold the Secretary of Defense’s priorities. The Honorable William A. LaPlante, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, presided over the event and emphasized the extraordinary effort and collaboration of the nearly 166,000 civilian and military professionals in the Defense Acquisition Workforce, including over 33,500 members of the Army Acquisition Workforce.
“Each of you exemplifies what it means to support our allies and partners, sharing our achievements, lessons learned, and also teaching and mentoring each other. We make ourselves stronger as a community,” LaPlante said. “It is imperative we continue to invest in our people, empower each other to evolve with the threats around us, and this is exactly why you are being recognized today.”
The ceremony honored professionals from the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Space Force, Defense Agencies, and Field Activities for their contributions to innovation and modernization, which help ensure the warfighter’s advantage. Among the Army’s honorees were two exceptional teams:
- Product Manager Robotic Combat Vehicle Team, Program Executive Office Ground Combat Systems, from Detroit Arsenal, Michigan, received the Flexibility in Acquisition Team Award. The team is first U.S. Army program to proactively decouple hardware and software acquisition by executing two Adaptive Acquisition Framework pathways. Thanks to the team’s innovative software development strategy, the development and delivery of foundational and transformational software capabilities has never been quicker.
- The Integrated Fires Mission Command Project Office, Program Executive Office Missiles & Space from Huntsville, Alabama, received the David Packard Excellence in Acquisition Team Award. Their groundbreaking work set the standards for modern software development leading to increased capability for the Warfighter to match the constantly changing threat environment.
Congratulations to all the winners – their achievements underscore the Army’s unwavering commitment to excellence and innovation in acquisition, delivering cutting-edge equipment and services to the warfighter.
To learn more about the Defense Acquisition Awards, go to: https://asc.army.mil/web/acquisition-awards.
