Program Related Publication Feeds

Defense in an Age of Austerity

jdunton — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0400

In order to comply with the Budget Control Act of 2011, the Department of Defense (DoD) will face a drawdown of uncertain magnitude.

Toward an Appropriate Mix of Conventional, Nuclear, and Missile Defense Forces

sherry — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 00:00:00 -0400

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s 2010 Strategic Concept declared that the “modern security environment contains a broad and evolving set of challenges to the security of NATO’s territory and populations.” To meet these demands, the accompanying Lisbon Declaration called for a Defense and Deterrence Posture Review (DPPR) to explore, among other topics, what should

The Libyan Intervention: a Study in U.S. Grand Strategy

ian — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 00:00:00 -0400

The intervention in Libya has sparked another debate over the role of grand strategy in U.S. foreign policy formulation. Analysts are asking if there is a new “Obama Doctrine” or if President Obama is simply “muddling through” and “ad hoc-ing it” from one foreign policy crisis to another.

Cost and Time Overruns for Major Defense Acquisition Programs (2011)

rlivergood — Wed, 11 May 2011 00:00:00 -0400

Cost and time overruns in Major Defense Acquisition Programs (MDAPs) have become a high-profile problem attracting the interest of Congress, government and watchdog groups.

These are the summary data tables for MDAPs which will be presented at the May 2011 Naval Post Graduate School annual Acquisition Symposium.

DIIG Current Issues No. 23: U.S. Military Aid and Sales to Egypt

gsanders — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 00:00:00 -0400

The recent popular protests in Egypt, and the concurrent images of U.S.-made tanks and tear gas canisters, have brought scrutiny upon the historical and remarkably constant U.S. military assistance to Egypt.

Risk Management in Non-DoD U.S. Government Agencies and the International Community

jdunton — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 00:00:00 -0400

As part of ongoing efforts by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy to develop an enterprise-wide risk management framework to guide Department of Defense (DoD) decisionmaking, the Office of the Secretary of Defense for Policy contracted a CSIS study team to identify risk management lessons learned and best practices among non-DoD U.S.

Structure and Dynamics of the U.S. Federal Professional Services Industrial Base, 1995-2009

gsanders — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0500

The U.S. government has a permanent and growing reliance on contracts with the private sector for a wide range of professional and support services. For the past five years, the CSIS Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group has tracked the trends driving the professional services industry since 1995.

Cost and Time Overruns for Major Defense Acquisition Programs (2010)

gsanders — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0400

Cost and time overruns in Major Defense Acquisition Programs (MDAPs) have become a high-profile problem attracting the interest of Congress, government and watchdog groups. According to the GAO, the 96 MDAPs from FY2008 collectively ran $296 billion over budget and were an average of 22 months behind schedule.

DIIG Current Issues No. 21: The Time Is Right for Export Control Reform

jhofbauer — Mon, 17 May 2010 00:00:00 -0400

Over the last year, a flurry of meetings, papers, announcements, and legislative initiatives has focused on an issue area that has bedeviled policy makers and industry officials alike for decades: how to reform the U.S. Government’s “byzantine amalgam of authorities, roles, and missions” relating to export controls.

National Security and the Commercial Space Sector

gsanders — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0400

In this DRAFT report, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) examines the relationship between U.S. national security and the commercial space sector, with specific focus on the current state of the space launch industry and launch market. Building on a CSIS annotated briefing released in 2008, entitled Health of the U.S.

The 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review

ian — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0500

The 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) report is the latest in a series of policy statements by Secretary of Defense Robert Gates that includes many speeches, the 2008 defense strategy, and a Foreign Affairs article on “reprogramming” the Pentagon for twenty-first century challenges.

The Ingenuity Gap

jdunton — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0500

The officer management system comprises the laws, policies, procedures, and practices that guide how officers enter service and are subsequently developed, promoted, and separated. The purpose of this study is to examine whether that system aligns with the demands officers are likely to face in the years ahead. The basic question is whether we can continue to count on success.

DIIG Current Issues No. 16: Wrestling with Complexity in Defense Programs

jhofbauer — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0500

In recent years, defense programs are more ambitious than any previously attempted. They promise unprecedented capability through integrating groundbreaking technologies into network-centric systems-of-systems, such as the Army’s Future Combat System (FCS) and the Coast Guard’s Integrated Deepwater System (IDS).

DIIG Current Issues No. 13: Measuring the Defense Industrial Value of Acquisition Programs

jhofbauer — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The primary objective of defense acquisition is to provide the warfighter with adequate equipment in a timely and economical way. A cornerstone in this process is the availability of a reliable, cost-effective, and sufficient industrial base that can develop, produce, and provide the products and services required by the Department of Defense (DoD). Section 2440 of U.S.

Organizing for a Complex World: The Way Ahead

jhofbauer — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Complex defense and network-centric systems have proven to be difficult to develop on time and on budget, a consequence of the complexity inherent in both the systems and the acquisition environment. These programs pose governance and management challenges, and it is difficult to know in advance the program-management model most suitable for a given program.

DIIG Current Issues No. 12: U.S. Competitiveness in the Fighter Aircraft Export Market

sherry — Tue, 26 May 2009 00:00:00 -0400

In his April 6, 2009 address, Sec. Gates discussed his vision for the F-22 “Raptor” and the F-35 “Lightning II”, two of the U.S. aerospace industry’s most prominent programs.

DIIG Current Issues No. 11: Aerospace & Defense: Inventing and Selling the Next Generation

Wed, 13 May 2009 00:00:00 -0400

“For innovation success,” wrote MIT researcher Michael Schrage, “do not follow the money.” He argued that while we can easily measure inputs such as research and development (R&D) spending, outputs and outcomes, such as R&D productivity or customers won or retained, tell us much more about the ability to innovate successfully.

DIIG Current Issues No. 8: The President's Government Contracting Review

Mon, 30 Mar 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Sound companies always benefit from smarter customers.

DIIG Current Issues No. 7: Case Study: The Drivers of a Successful COTS Acquisition

Fri, 13 Mar 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The efforts of the U.S. Department of Defense to match equipment acquisitions strategy with policy choices and effectively manage ongoing programs have repeatedly made news as the Obama administration attempts to define its priorities and identify programs that provide value to the warfighter and the taxpayer.

DIIG Current Issues No. 6: The VH-71 and the Industrial Base

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The VH-71 was one of the first high-profile US acquisition programs in which European firms played a prominent part. By allowing foreign manufacturers to participate, the Defense Department can get the benefits of a broader supplier universe, including greater competition and innovation.

Structure and Dynamics of the U.S. Federal Professional Services Industrial Base, 1995-2007

Thu, 12 Feb 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The U.S. government has a permanent and growing reliance on contracts with the private sector for a wide range of professional and support services. For the past three years, CSIS research has tracked the trends driving the professional services industry since 1995. This report analyzes these trends through 2007, the most recent year for which reliable data are available.

DIIG Current Issues No. 5: The cost of cutting defense acquisition

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Defense acquisition cuts carry risks. Budget decisions must be consistent with a clear defense strategy. In particular, operational, financial and industrial-base factors have to be considered before opting to reduce defense acquisition spending.

Organizing for a Complex World

Wed, 28 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Government agencies, primarily the U.S. Department of Defense, currently face an unparalleled leap in complexity as the information revolution presents opportunities to create large, complex net-centric systems-of-systems. Furthermore, individual weapon systems are becoming more intricate as more technology is inserted, requirements mount, and capabilities increase.

Transitioning Defense Organizational Initiatives

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0500

The CSIS U.S. Defense and National Security Group and Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group examined eight years of defense reforms during the administration of George W. Bush and identified for the incoming administration (1) successful reforms to maintain, (2) partially successful reforms to improve, (3) and failed experiments to halt.

DIIG Current Issues No. 3: Defense Economics

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0500

While the U.S. economy slowed in the third calendar quarter, defense spending leaped, far outstripping other government agencies. It is tempting to draw the conclusion that defense spending is somehow not aligned with the rest of the economy. Here is why that conclusion is incorrect.

Nuclear Weapons in 21st Century U.S. National Security

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0500

During the Cold War, the purpose of the United States nuclear arsenal was to deter nuclear threats to the United States, primarily from the Soviet Union.

DIIG Current Issues No. 2: Small Businesses

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0400

The Washington Post found that many contractors are misclassified as small businesses in the Federal Procurement Data Service. We provide additional information of the scope and nature of this problem.

DIIG Current Issues No. 1: Cost-Plus Contracts

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0400

For the first time in the history of televised presidential debates, contracting has moved to the stage. During the first Presidential debate, one candidate stated that to get defense costs under control, "we have to do away with cost-plus contracts.".

In addition to this report there is a "Cost-plus Contracting Narrated Slide Show"

Managing the Next Domestic Catastrophe

Fri, 06 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0400

America is not ready for the next catastrophe.

Toward a U.S. Export Control and Technology Transfer System for the 21st Century

Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 -0400

The United States is currently involved in a wide spectrum of complex national security challenges around the world. Challenges posed by rising regional powers, global terrorism, and failed states will be long and enduring. These can only be effectively met with the help of our allies and coalition partners.

Invigorating Defense Governance

Thu, 20 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0400

This report is the final installment in the Beyond Goldwater-Nichols (BG-N) project assessment of defense reform. The report takes a strategic view of defense governance, focusing on the future efforts of the next U.S. secretary of defense and the secretary's senior-most aides to fulfill priority objectives.

The Department of Defense and the Nuclear Mission in the 21st Century

Wed, 05 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500

This report argues that nuclear weapons are still important to U.S.

Health of the U.S. Space Industrial Base and the Impact of Export Controls

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

The briefing summarizes the work of an independent Working Group, co-chaired by Mr. Tom Young (former EVP, Lockheed Martin Corporation), Dr. William Ballhaus (The Aerospace Corporation) and Mr. Pierre Chao (Senior Associate, CSIS), tasked to assess the health of the U.S. space industrial base in the international landscape and determine the impact of export controls on it.

U.S. Air Force Bomber Modernization Plans

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0500

As a separate, standalone input to its ongoing work, IRIS Independent Research asked Clark Murdock, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), to provide a quick

Integrating 21st Century Development and Security Assistance

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0500

In early 2007, CSIS launched an expert task force to examine the growing involvement of the Department of Defense as a direct provider of “non-traditional” security assistance, concentrated in counterterrorism, capacity building, stabilization and reconstruction, and humanitarian relief.

Planning for Stability Operations

Fri, 21 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Since the 2001 Quadrennial Defense Review, the Department of Defense (DOD) has placed a high priority on institutionalizing capabilities-based planning (CBP). In an era of uncertainty, such an approach …

Special Operations Forces Aviation

Fri, 26 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

The special operations forces (SOF) mission in 2007 is more diverse and demanding than at practically any time in history.

Independent Commission on the Security Forces of Iraq

Thu, 06 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0400

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) provided support to an independent commission appointed by Congress to conduct an assessment of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF). Chaired by General …

The Structure and Dynamics of the U.S. Federal Professional Services Industrial Base, 1995-2005

Tue, 01 May 2007 00:00:00 -0400

The macro trends driving the professional services industry over the past decade extended into 2005 and 2006. There is a continuing and growing reliance on the private sector for a wide range of professional and support services by the U.S. government.

Rethinking the National Guard and Homeland Defense

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0500

On March 1, 2007 the independent Commission on the National Guard and Reserves released its second report to Congress. This interim report, directed by the FY 2007 National Defense Authorization Act,…

Beyond Goldwater-Nichols: An Annotated Brief

Tue, 01 Aug 2006 00:00:00 -0400

Defense acquisition reform has been on-going almost continuously since the original Goldwater-Nichols legislation was passed in 1986.

The Future of the National Guard and Reserves

Wed, 12 Jul 2006 00:00:00 -0400

The way the United States uses its National Guard and Reserves has been evolving over the last decade, but for many of those years the changes went unnoticed, even by members of the defense community. …

Beyond Goldwater-Nichols Phase II Report

Thu, 28 Jul 2005 00:00:00 -0400

This report brings the BG-N approach to bear on the entire U.S. national security structure. It proceeds from a number of overarching principles. The most relevant of these principles is that in an era of fast-moving, unpredictable challenges, government should be more agile – facilitating action is preferable to incentivizing inaction.

Beyond Goldwater-Nichols Phase I Report

Mon, 01 Mar 2004 00:00:00 -0500

The BG-N study team takes a broad view of defense reform, as is necessary in the new strategic era.