WASHINGTON \u2014 The Space Force\u2019s push to accelerate procurement of new systems is running up against a basic constraint: not enough contracting officers and financial managers to execute the work.<\/p>\n
Senior leaders and industry executives speaking last week at the Air & Space Forces Association\u2019s Warfare Symposium described a procurement system under strain. The Pentagon has pressed the services to move faster, leaning more heavily on Other Transaction Authorities, commercial-style buying models, iterative contracting and streamlined source selections. Those tools are intended to speed awards and tap nontraditional suppliers. They also add complexity.<\/p>\n
Maj. Gen. Stephen Purdy, senior adviser to the secretary of the Air Force for space acquisitions, said the service needs procurement professionals not just to manage its current portfolio but also implement more intricate contracting approaches.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have got to deliver integrated warfighting capabilities,\u201d Purdy said.<\/p>\n
This means a shift in emphasis from procuring individual hardware platforms to fielding integrated systems designed to transition directly into operations. Rather than awarding contracts for discrete satellites or ground systems, the Space Force is increasingly defining requirements around effects, such as persistent global missile tracking. That approach requires aligning multiple programs, vendors and domains into a coherent capability.<\/p>\n
For example, satellites, ground infrastructure, user terminals, data links, software, cyber protection and command-and-control need to function as a unified combat capability.<\/p>\n
Purdy said this demands a different skill set from acquisition professionals. \u201cYour job is to deliver integrated war fighting capability. It\u2019s not to deliver a box,\u201d he said, adding that the traditional focus on cost, schedule and contract performance no longer captures the full scope of the mission.<\/p>\n
To address that gap, said Purdy, the Space Systems Command has created a new training program tailored to those priorities. Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink said at the symposium that expanding and properly training the acquisition workforce has become a top priority.<\/p>\n
But hiring and training take time, and several career fields are already under acute strain.<\/p>\n
Purdy singled out the so-called PK community, responsible for contracting policy, guidance and oversight, including planning solicitations, negotiating terms and managing compliance. He described shortages there as a government-wide issue. Financial management specialists, known as the FM community, are similarly stretched. \u201cWe can\u2019t get any of our work done without finance,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Industry execs: workforce reductions are visible<\/p>\n
Kevin Czinger, founder and executive chairman of digital manufacturing firm Divergent, noted that the military has lost hundreds of contracting officers across the services. At a time when the U.S. risks being outpaced by China in technology development, he said, contracting \u201cneeds to be enormously sped up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chris Long, deputy general manager for space, cyber and intelligence at General Dynamics Mission Systems, said the loss of contracting officers in the Air Force, Space Force and intelligence community has made dealings with the government \u201ca little bit more complicated\u201d for contractors.<\/p>\n