The Government Accountability Office has concluded its annual assessment of the Department of Defense’s weapon systems acquisition and found that the Pentagon continues to struggle with delivering new technologies in a timely manner.
GAO said that DOD has made changes to its department-wide acquisition policies, including creating the Adaptive Acquisition Framework, but “slow, linear development approaches” remain, hindering its ability to deliver innovative technologies quickly.
The Adaptive Acquisition Framework offers various pathways for acquisition programs, such as the major capability acquisition pathway, which covers major defense acquisition programs, and the middle tier acquisition pathway, which is for rapid prototyping and rapid fielding.
However, GAO found that some programs in the new pathways are not likely to deliver much faster than traditional programs.
GAO recommended that DOD address how MTA programs implement leading practices for product development, define goals for its software cadre and identify resources and strategies for achieving the set goals.