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The US Department of Defense has announced plans to move to a performance-based software acquisition approach.
The new software-buying strategy follows a recent “Directing Modern Software Acquisition to Maximise Lethality” memorandum published by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
Under the new software pathway, programs will move to a more product/warfighter-centric delivery model based on commercial best practice, according to Defense officials.
“Software is at the core of every weapon and supporting system we field to remain the strongest, most lethal fighting force in the world. While commercial industry has rapidly adjusted to a software-defined product reality, DOD has struggled to reframe our acquisition process from a hardware-centric to a software-centric approach,” US Defense Secretary Hegseth said.
“When it comes to software acquisition, we are overdue in pivoting to a performance-based outcome and, as such, it is the warfighter who pays the price.
“It is a top priority for Department of Defense to reform its acquisition processes in order to acquire, deliver and iterate on our weapon and business systems – including software – at speed and scale for our warfighter.
“To start, DOD must maximise the use of its existing authorities, contracting strategies and processes for software acquisition. This will enable us to immediately shift to a construct designed to keep pace with commercial technology advancements, leverage the entire commercial ecosystem for defence systems, rapidly deliver scaled digital capabilities and evolve our systems faster than adversaries can adapt on the battlefield.
“To meet this challenge, I am directing all Department of Defense components to adopt the Software Acquisition Pathway (SWP) as the preferred pathway for all software development components of business and weapon system programs in the department.”
