Improving the Acquisition Process

There was considerable confusion during the times of turbulent change in the CAO environment. I could have used the following process to make a needed improvement:

1. The impersonal system of direct deposit must be arrested on the occasion of selected program and contract completions. The old-fashioned technique of personal presentation and recognition would be a simple improvement with numerous advantages. A public ceremony for selected accomplishments would have always been a reminder and a way to bring the major milestones into focus.
2. The ceremony would have been planned on the event of significant contract closings or major program accomplishments. The best event would be the final payment on a development or production phase. The event should be scheduled to coincide with the settlement of outstanding indebtedness and thus provide the opportunity for simultaneous financial reconciliation because of the added participation of government and contractor finance officials during the final consideration. Then I would either provide the entire payment if the indebtedness is instantly resolved or a diminished payment reserving the balance for possible financing claims. A conclusive exchange could have given the transaction the needed visibility to accomplish these improvements.
3. The result would emphasize the separation of the system for anticipating the final completion and the final processing of actual completion. The previous impersonal direct deposits blur the actual final act causing the need for the distinction to be made. The real separation would have been enhanced and more easily understood as perceived by both government and industry as well as the interested public:

A journey begins with the first step ... and ... a journey ends with the final step.

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