Defense acquisition feels broken, because it’s working exactly as designed — to prevent political embarrassment rather than enable mission success. Dr. Alexis Lasselle Ross, President of Apex Defense Strategies, spent 25 years navigating this system and breaks down the fundamental business dynamics that control America’s defense spending, from congressional quasi-entitlements that build on themselves year after year to the five-year budget cycle that disconnects funding decisions from technology development.

Alexis sees the current moment as uniquely positioned for significant acquisition reform, she tells Ian, with alignment across government and industry driven by the China threat. She explains why contracting officers become risk-averse by design, operating under layers of regulations from decades of reactive policymaking, and identifies the breakthrough authorities that could finally address funding inflexibility.

Topics Discussed:

• How congressional control of military compensation creates quasi-entitlements that build on themselves and resist change.
• The three-part acquisition system of requirements, funding, and procurement, and why funding inflexibility may be the biggest barrier to defense innovation.
• The technical knowledge gap between increasingly sophisticated weapon systems and the acquisition workforce, and how SETA contractors fill this gap.
• How the five-year budget cycle disconnects funding decisions from technology development, with program managers receiving money years after initial requirements are established.
• Why contracting officers and program managers become risk-averse by design, operating under layers of regulations designed to prevent political embarrassment rather than enable mission success.
• The historical pattern of acquisition reform from the 1980s interoperability crisis through current China-driven alignment, and why this wave differs from previous attempts.
• How leadership turnover on multi-year programs leaves acquisition officers “holding the bag” when innovative approaches fail.
• The discovery and attempted implementation of breakthrough funding authorities buried in existing law, and why timing matters for institutional change.
• Strategic priorities for defense business reform, including private capital employment and domestic manufacturing modernization for potential conflict scenarios.