How Industry's Innovative T&E Efforts Align With Better Buying Power 3.0

"Our technological superiority is being effectively challenged" due to the remarkable worldwide leveling of the state of technology delivered by commercial off the shelf (COTS) computing, communications, and sensors.  Better Buying Power (BBP) 3.0 presents initiatives to achieve dominant capabilities through innovation and technical excellence, as offered by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, Mr. Frank Kendall on 19 September 2014.

This week the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) San Diego Chapter put on their Fall C4I Industry Day for close to 400 registrants from across the defense industry, government and academia.  The panel delivered by the International Test & Evaluation Association (ITEA) San Diego Chapter was well received based upon limited feedback and my observation of our audience from the podium as panel moderator.  The expert panelists offered personal experiences and insights on half a dozen of the BBP 3.0 initiatives, specifically focusing on those that can be supported by industry's innovative Test & Evaluation efforts.

The panelists were exactly the right experts, not so senior that they haven't had their hands in the gear recently, but not so junior that they're unsure of themselves or are reluctant to speak up.  All I had to do was tee up the initiatives and ask a few pointed questions of:

• Dr. Bob McGraw, who co-founded RAM Laboratories in 1997, and is the company's Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, responsible for the oversight and technical direction of RAM Labs' applied research for Information Assurance, cyber security, modeling and simulation, and decision science-related efforts.  He is the author/co-author of over 40 papers in the fields of cyber security and modeling and simulation, and he earned his MS and PhD in EE from the University of Virginia.  
• Michael MacFadden, the Chief Engineer and Chief Technology Officer of Solute Consulting, a San Diego-based small business providing engineering, aviation, training, and other consulting services to the federal government and prime contractors.  Michael holds a MS in Computer Science from San Diego State University, and a BS from the Rochester Institute of Technology.
• Susan Wellersdieck, a Senior Analyst with G2 Software Systems, a woman-owned small business based in San Diego that has been providing high-quality software application development and systems engineering solutions since 1989.  Susan has over 30 years of progressive experience in software development and management, with an MBA as well as a BA in Economics from the University of California San Diego.  She is also a certified Program Management Professional (PMP).
• Michael Costello, the Technical Director of Lockheed Martin's Technology Collaboration Center - West in San Diego.  He's has worked in systems engineering and architecture for over 20 years, and is a certified PMP.  Prior to directing TCC-West, Mike worked in Lockheed Martin Corporate Engineering and Technology, where he was the deputy for the Engineering for Affordability Initiative, and worked to establish the Architect Development and Qualification program. 

Here are short versions of the BBP 3.0 initiatives and questions they addressed at considerable length.  I would recommend to you a Google of Mr. Kendall's website in order to fully appreciate these and the other initiatives:

• Improving the Return on Investment in DoD laboratories.  Question:  Do you envision a way for industry, with considerable investments in laboratories, to work with the DoD labs in order to improve return on investment?  Is establishing that working relationship doable at a local level, or would you file that under "too hard"?
• Eliminate Unproductive Processes and Bureaucracy.  Question:  The discussions surrounding Speed to Capability tend to focus on rapid advancements in the technologies.  But what about the business practices affecting Speed to Capability?  A few years ago Dr. Marv Langston blogged about "...the potential impact of changing the primary acquisition metrics from cost, schedule, and performance to Speed to Capability."  He suggested cost, schedule and performance are of secondary importance.  "Building transparency around everything that reduces Speed to Capability would allow bureaucratic processes to be exposed and corrected." Are there innovative T&E efforts that could help address this issue, and what additional transparency might be needed in order to eliminate unproductive processes and bureaucracy?
• Promote Effective Competition by improving technology search and outreach in global markets.  Emphasize competition by creating and maintaining competitive environments. Question:  What are your thoughts on creating and sustaining a competitive environment within T&E?  Are there ways to ensure new sources have opportunities to win their way onto programs?
• Remove Barriers to commercial technology utilization.  Question:  What kinds of innovative T&E efforts might affect the barriers currently preventing technology companies from doing business with DoD?
• Improve Tradecraft in the Acquisition Services.  Increase Small Business participation, including more effective market research.  Question:  What are your thoughts on innovative ways the government could acquire T&E services that would promote small business participation?

As I listened to these experts in their fields, suggestions of  rapid "third party assessments" of candidate technologies was repeatedly emphasized.  Within the world of Navy C4I, government T&E is absolutely essential, otherwise the "third party" rapid yet robust assessments are promoting acceleration to nowhere.  Industry and government can work together to address Mr. Kendall's initiatives, if there is a will to do so.  Government can't go it alone, because they don't have the resources to do all the T&E they want to do or even need to do, and that condition will be getting worse before it gets better.  I would suggest that major C4I systems are still getting to the Fleet without being adequately tested... witness the new racks of the latest shipboard computing equipment subjected to hard crashes because the backup power system in those racks designed and intended to provide battery power after the loss of ship's power weren't programmed to initiate that controlled, graceful shutdown.  The results are akin to unplugging your laptop, then popping out the battery with all your applications running and work not saved... times how many Sailors using that common computing environment?

For those of you in the audience during our panel discussion, I'd very much appreciate your observations and insights.  Constructive and meaningful collaboration is important.  Others who care to join in the discussion please do, and I thank you in advance for your contributions.  ITEA San Diego will be presenting follow-on panels, probably as deep dives into BBP 3.0 initiatives.  You may want to join the ITEA San Diego's LinkedIn group to stay in touch.