"To deliver relevant capability at speed and scale, we need acquisition rules and systems that involve. And we need a force of professionals, trained and empowered, who understand how to lead across the full acquisition lifecycle."

So said former NASA astronaut (and then NPS provost) Dr. Jim Newman at last year's Annual Acquisition Research Symposium and Innovation Summit.

Sharing images from his time in space, Dr. Newman highlighted that mission success depends on rigorous acquisition across engineering, testing, program management, contracting, and logistics.

He was joined by NPS doctoral candidate Major Dillon Pierce (now graduated with a PhD in astronautical engineering) who shared the results of his doctoral dissertation, a project that merged engineering and acquisition sciences to rapidly design and test tactical missiles and transition them from concept to capability.

The U.S. military faces an urgent need for tactical missile capabilities that are more affordable, scalable, and adaptable to rapidly evolving threats. With its focus on closing the gaps between warfighter needs, acquisition pace, and technical feedback loops, Maj Pierce's research charts a path toward accelerating capability solutions at greater speeds and scale.

In fact, his work paved the way for the first Tactical Missile Innovation Challenge, sponsored the NPS and the Office of Naval Research, a prize-based competition to accelerate innovative approaches to tactical missile development.

The opening remarks from Dr. Newman and Major Pierce set the stage for the day's panel discussion, which focused on acquisition innovation, technology transition, and delivering overmatch capability to the warfighter.

That conversation will continue in just a couple weeks at this year's event, Accelerating Warfighting Capabilities, NPS' 23rd Annual Acquisition Research Symposium & Innovation Summit.

Maj. Pierce will join us again, this time to present a full research brief, alongside senior leaders and researchers from the service, industry, and academia.

The event takes virtually on May 6 & 7 from 9 am - 5:30 pm Eastern / 6 am - 2:30 pm Pacific.

See the full program and complete your registration on our event page.