Work Tasks Defense Business Board With Investigating S&T Investments

摘要

The Pentagon's No. 2 official has called on an influential business panel to investigate ways to optimize the Defense Department's science and technology investments. In a terms of reference memo signed out last month, Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work tasked the Defense Business Board with conducting a study to look at how innovative industry leaders manage science and technology and make "decisions to optimize their S&T investments and the processes they use to forecast and plan for future" research and development. "Given the anticipated government spending reductions and increased investment from [the] private sector, the DOD needs a portfolio management strategy and the right tools to ensure its R&D funds are directed to achieve maximum benefits for the department," Work wrote. Work's June 17 memo notes that DOD spends about $12 billion annually on S&T, and this money is "essential for building the knowledge and technology base for future DOD capabilities and is the source for critical 'leap-ahead' technologies that advance DOD's warfighting capabilities." The Defense Business Board's study should examine how the Pentagon could learn from industry's best practices "to better direct and leverage basic research funds to benefit the defense mission," according to Work's memo. In addition, the board should examine ways for the Pentagon to better invest in research and development in order to "attract fledgling technology development companies that focus on emerging capabilities." The task group should also examine business decisions across a variety of organizations, including tech start-ups, universities and venture capital firms.