Capabilities-centric Acquisition: A System of Systems View of Acquisition Management

The purpose of this paper is to begin a discussion on the need and complexity of managing the material acquisition process from a capability focused perspective. As warfighters develop doctrine, tactics, techniques, and procedures for the current and future fight, they do so from a joint and combined arms perspective. Battlespace success is viewed from the combined effects of multiple systems providing a synchronized force multiplier for the Commander. Conversely, our acquisition process remains trapped in a historical paradigm designed to meet Cold War requirements. This paper does not intend on offering the solution. This is merely a thought piece on perspectives from someone who is challenged daily with the opportunity of developing a capability management process for integrating future capability into the current force organizational construct. The Department of Defense is challenged with balancing weapon system modernization and maintaining an operational force ready to fight and win the Global War on Terrorism. As the Department seeks to transform itself into a twenty-first century force, the acquisition process is stuck in a Cold War mentality focused on preserving the existing platform-centric approach to acquisition. Tomorrow's battlespace will be a network-centric environment derived from system- of-systems within which the sum of the parts generates an interdependent capability much more effective than the stand-alone, platform-centric environment of the past. Our DoD acquisition process is still oriented on building platforms that come to the fight as applique solutions, rather than seamlessly integrated warfighting systems designed to enhance the total capability. This dichotomy is straining the DoD budget by focusing our limited resources on an ever-decreasing number of platforms that are hugely expensive and fall short of meeting the ever-increasing number of capability gaps being endured by our warfighter. Presented at the Annual Acquisition Research Symposium (4th): Creating Synergy for Informed Change, Thursday sessions, held in Monterey, CA, on May 16-17, 2007. Published in the proceedings of the symposium, p464-473, 2007. Prepared in cooperation with PEO Ground Combat Systems. The original document contains color images.