During the 2000 presidential race, then Texas Governor George W. Bush advocated transforming and reforming how the Department of Defense (DoD) acquires new weapon systems. He promised a "revolution" that would "skip a generation of technology," in order to "move on to futuristic weapons without necessarily buying all those in development." This thesis examines President Bush's proposal and analyzes the potential impact on DoD and the defense industry. Ultimately the research revealed that there are ways to improve the acquisition process and protect the defense industry. The primary conclusion of the research is that it is feasible to skip current weapon systems in development, in order to begin research and development of the next-generation weapon systems. However, DoD will be impacted through higher operations and sustainment (O & S) costs to sustain existing weapon systems if weapon systems currently in development are skipped. The acquisition professionals that participated in this study believe these O & S costs could increase up to 10% per year for anywhere from five to 20 years depending on the type of system. This thesis makes additional recommendations and areas of further research. / Captain, United States Marine Corps

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / This thesis investigates the effect that acquisition reform has had on small business participation in the Federal contracting arena. As a result of the transformation of the Federal acquisition process through acquisition reform legislation and the reduction in the acquisition workforce, small business contractors are faced with new challenges to compete for and win Federal contracts. This paper concentrates on examining contract bundling, reverse auctions, electronic commerce and multiple award schedules. It concludes that contract bundling has had a negative effect on small businesses by excluding them from many competitions. It also finds that electronic commerce has had a positive effect on small businesses by giving them greater access to Federal contract opportunities and by speeding up the acquisition process. Regarding multiple award schedules, the research supports benefits for small businesses when they are given the chance to compete through multiple award schedules. It also finds negative implications for small businesses in that multiple award schedules often favor large established businesses at the expense of small businesses. The paper finds a lack of awareness on the part of small business concerning reverse auctions and finds no major impact on small businesses resulting from reverse auctions. / Civilian, Department of the Army PEO-EIS

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / This study examines the effects of acquisition reform on Women-Owned Small Businesses (WOSBs) and Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDBs) who contracted with DOD during the 1990s through 2002 timeframe. Review and analysis of DOD data for fiscal years 1992 through 2002, an analysis of websites and acquisition literature, and interviews with DOD contracting and small business specialists provided the basis for this study. It identifies acquisition reform legislation enacted in the 1990s that has had a direct impact on WOSBs and SDBs and examines the charge that the practice of contract bundling has negatively impacted the ability of small businesses to win DOD contracts. An analysis of contract bundling data from the Small Business Office of Advocacy, Congress and DOD demonstrates that the data is insufficient and inconsistent to prove or disprove that contract bundling is negatively impacting small businesses. However, DOD data for fiscal years 1992 through 2002 indicates that DOD contracting with WOSBs improved consistently, particularly after enactment of the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act (FASA) of 1994 which mandated that the federal government, inclusive of DOD, award five percent of total yearly procurement dollars to WOSBs. / Civilian, United States Army