The service chiefs should have more input in the acquisition process, and change the message to the workforce, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday.
“There’s a message that gets sent throughout the acquisition force that they don’t work for the uniformed military, that they work for the civilians,” Odierno said in response to Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), who wanted to know what should change.
“And I think that’s a dangerous message,” Odierno said. “I think that our experience and support in the process is very important and I think we should play a bigger role in approving where we’ going–milestones–and how the requirements meet with what’s being done by the acquisition (corps). Oversight by the military would be more important and could add some potential positive energy toward building better acquisition programs.
Reed was interested in learning more about the issue Odierno discussed at a House Armed Services Committee hearing the day before (Defense Daily, March 17).
Army Secretary John McHugh said the proposal does make some sense. Across the history of the Army’s acquisition programs, there were some negative things, but “I don’t want to ascribe it all to service chiefs not having enough reach and visibility in the latter part of the program.”
Civilian control of the military and the military’s responsibilities under Title 10 law to recruit train and equip personnel are not necessarily mutually exclusive, McHugh said, and the issue of more service involvement in acquisition “at a minimum should absolutely be discussed.”
In response, Reed said SASC Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) is going to talk about it with the committee and colleagues.
In the past, McCain has said he would evaluate the role of the service chiefs in the acquisition process as part of his work on the defense authorization legislation and on broader acquisition reform.