Middle Tier Acquisitions and Innovation

Abstract

How can we tell if policy innovations such as Middle Tier Acquisitions are working as intended? This research uses publicly-released data consisting of budget submissions, program-related reporting, and contemporaneous press releases to describe how the services are using Middle Tier Acquisition authorities to accelerate system innovation. Project schedule durations and intervals between significant events are used as indicators of significant schedule innovations. Middle Tier Acquisition programs have development times like other acquisition programs, but are much faster than other acquisition processes in going from initiation to development start and from design review to fielding of a prototype or capability.