Elaine McCusker, John Ferrari, and Todd Harrison focus on ways to increase efficiency within the Department of Defense.

The Department of Defense (DOD) is about to undergo a welcome and overdue fundamental shift in its operations. This shift is enabled by four intersecting yet simultaneous forces acting upon it. First, the potential for needed real increases in resources from Congress. Second, clear, global American foreign policy objectives. Third, active participation in defense weapons innovation and production from large and small non-traditional defense contractors. And fourth, a change in the risk profile for reform driven by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from one in which the fear of failure is replaced with the fearlessness of creativity. …

… To fully understand the opportunities presented, and particularly the positive pressure DOGE can bring, one should keep in mind the other three forces – money, global leadership, and more players on the field supporting defense technology advancement.  All of these elements feed into the changing risk profile that DOGE brings to the table – fearless, innovative, and rapid improvements.

Any review of defense programs, activities and spending starts with strategy and requirements. Or it should. To make the work of DOGE more efficient in identifying and making lasting positive changes, core functions should be central to examining programs, activities and funding across the federal government. This is particularly true for Defense. National defense is too crucial to the survival and prosperity of the nation to get wrong. It also presents meaningful opportunities for improvement.  Keeping it simple and therefore more likely to be achievable and sustainable, this paper examines defense in four large categories: 1) organization, 2) weapons systems, 3) operations, and 4) personnel.

There are reasons, and sometimes laws, behind current Department of Defense organization, programs, operations and personnel policies. Some good. Some not. It can be informative to understand why things are the way they are, but delving too deep into the past can also be a distraction. The question DOGE must answer is whether these activities, policies, and structures serve the nation’s interest today.