Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution in Comparative Organizations: Case Studies of Selected Allied and Partner Nations

Abstract

The United States (U.S.) Department of Defense’s (DoD’s) Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution (PPBE) System was originally developed in the 1960s as a structured approach for planning long-term resource development, assessing program cost-effectiveness, and aligning resources to strategies. Yet changes to the strategic environment, the industrial base, and the nature of military capabilities have raised the question of whether existing U.S. defense budgeting processes remain well aligned with national security needs. The U.S. Congress called for the establishment of a commission on PPBE reform. As part of its data collection efforts, the commission asked RAND to conduct case studies of budgeting processes across 16 comparative organizations: 10 international defense organizations and six U.S. federal government agencies. In this paper, RAND researchers provide a summary of the case studies of the defense budgeting processes of Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom (U.K.). Researchers conducted extensive document reviews and structured discussions with subject-matter experts with experience in the budgeting processes of the international governments. Each case study was assigned a unique team with appropriate regional or organizational expertise. The analysis was also supplemented by experts in the U.S. PPBE process.