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Happy Friday!
This week, DoD released its IT modernization strategy, named Fulcrum. The press release says, "This new strategy prioritizes user experience and investment in infrastructure that is both agile and scalable to meet the dynamic requirements of operations and opportunities offered by the most modern technologies." It has four lines of effort, one of which focuses on the workforce.
SXSW has banned the Army or defense contractors from sponsoring future events, motivated by musicians who pulled out of this year's gathering to protest the Israel-Gaza war. The decision has kicked off conversations about whether the DoD presence at this annual showcase is innovation theater or an effective way to connect to commercial innovators.
In Replicator news, the Army is on schedule to buy more than 1,000 Switchblade drones as part of the initiative. And the next phase of Replicator will be announced later this summer.
Our top story brings an update to how DISA will convey its tech priorities to industry, following the increasingly common best practice of using problem statements rather than detailed requirement documents.
The Cost Accounting Standards Board is moving out on a Section 809 Panel recommendation to clarify applications of CAS to indefinite delivery vehicles, such as IDIQs.
In research, Brookings has released a study on the defense industrial base that includes, among other things, data showing the defense industry is relatively healthy financially. It also makes recommendations on investing in and incentivizing the defense industrial base.
Bill Greenwalt has written a piece arguing that it's time for DoD to give up on CMMC--and if it doesn't, Congress should force the issue. His justification: it's too expensive and static, and there are better ways to meet the goal of cybersecurity for defense contractors.
In NPS news, NPS recently hosted the Maritime Risk Symposium, bringing together the sea services to consider gray zone operations, the latest Tri-Service Maritime Strategy, and more.
And in ARP news, check out the edited version of the video from the symposium's panel on innovative contracting approaches, chaired by Maj Gen Alice Treviño and featuring the research of three NPS faculty members.
This Week's Top Story
DISA says IT ‘problem statements’ will help industry speed innovation
Molly Weisner, C4ISRNET
To help it buy the right technology from IT companies, the Defense Information Systems Agency said it will publish a list of problem statements this fall alongside its annual tech priorities watchlist.
Steve Wallace, the agency’s chief technology officer, said at the 2024 TechNet Cyber conference presented by the Armed Forces Communications & Electronics Association International that this is a way of getting at a common problem in the Defense Department: a focus on emerging technology without a clear understanding of the problem its intended to solve.
“How does the department understand what you all can bring forward?” he said to a crowd of industry leaders and other cyber professionals in Baltimore June 26. “And then at the same time, how do you understand what the heck we actually need? There’s always that friction there.”
It’s not just an attempt to speed up the acquisitions process as the Pentagon is in a race for digital dominance against China and other nation-state hackers. So much of the conversation around cybersecurity in national defense is around pacing, but with industry constantly coming to market with new tools, there’s a need by government to be a wary purchaser. ...
“It is our ability to interface with industry, but knowing that the dollars that mature the technology are industry dollars, and not tax dollars, and then understanding where to apply some tactical patience as industry develops tech and [then we] insert ourselves,” said Army Maj. David Courter, chief of combatant command plan integration with the J-5. “I think that’s much different than us writing an initial capabilities document and saying, ‘I need you to build this cool tool.’”
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