Building Industrial Resilience with a Little Help from Our Friends: Adapting DoD Acquisition Processes to Facilitate Allied and Partner Engagement

Abstract

This paper focuses on numerous existing and recent initiatives and programs involving allied and partner support to the U.S. defense industrial base and explores how they are currently instantiated in DoD acquisition processes. Are DoD acquisition processes able to effectively utilize efforts such as the National Technology Industrial Base (NTIB), Reciprocal Defense Procurement Agreements, Defense Production Act (DPA) Title III, and others to foster programs with partners that build industrial resilience in the defense industrial base? Research and interviews found that most of these efforts have promising foundations, but DoD acquisition processes need adaption to effectively increase allied and partner involvement. The author makes a series of recommendations to address these findings about the programs analyzed and the acquisition system itself. The author concludes that reframing acquisition processes and programs to better include partners and allies is ultimately a win-win proposition for all parties involved. Pursuing this approach will help to provide a concrete foundation for the future of international industrial collaboration and will build the industrial resilience needed to face the national security challenges of today and tomorrow. The paper also points to areas for further research to further refine the recommendations and explore specific areas in greater depth.