Defense Acquisitions : Assessment of Selected Weapon Programs (8th)

Examines how well DoD is planning and executing its weapon acquisition programs. The report includes: (1) observations on DoD's efforts to manage its portfolio of major defense acquisition programs; (2) an assessment of the knowledge attained by key junctures in the acquisition process for a subset of 42 weapon programs from the 2009 portfolio; (3) data on other factors that can affect program execution; and (4) examples of how DoD is implementing recent acquisition reforms. Sullivan analyzed data on the composition of DoD's portfolio of major defense acquisition programs. He also collected data from program offices on technology, design, and manufacturing knowledge. He compiled one- or two-page assessments of 70 weapon programs. Illus.