Air Force Acquisition Head Intends to Add Software Experts to Acquisition Process

Will Roper, assistant secretary of the U.S. Air Force for acquisition, technology and logistics, intends to train military program managers to understand software development and improve how the service acquires new technologies, Federal News Network reported Thursday. 

The official will work with the Air Force Education and Training Command to create formal certification for Air Force software leaders to participate in the tech acquisition process. Roper also wants to assign the officials as coding ambassadors, who will oversee systems development and procurement. 

“We train people to be acquisition professionals and we call them materiel leaders and senior materiel leaders. We have certifications that say you can have this much control, we don’t have that for software,” Roper said. 

In 2018, the Air Force established the Kessel Run hub in Boston, tasked with building and providing new software and applications to airmen. The service has plans for additional hubs in the future, including those planned for the Space and Missile Systems Center, the Air Force’s Distributed Common Ground System and the Air Force Sustainment Center.