Development Process

A common problem in defense acquisition is the diffi-culty in ensuring that the required capabilities stated in capability development documents are technically feasible, affordable, and available through mature tech-nologies. This problem is driven by a lack of knowledge on both the capability developer and program manager teams. Addressing this knowledge gap requires a new approach to capability development, where knowledge gained early in the process is injected into the capability development process in a rigorous way. This article describes that new technical approach along with lessons learned on two large acquisition programs. Key tenets include the use of pre-planned knowledge points as a vehicle for expanded collaboration between program managers and capability developers, and early use of systems engineering fundamentals. Report Documentation Page Form ApprovedOMB No. 0704-0188 Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information