By Robert Brodsky, Zack Phillips and Katherine McIntire Peters
Government Executive August 15, 2007
Lead systems integrators are in the hot seat as major programs flounder.
What a difference a few years make. Five years ago, with great optimism, the Coast Guard let the largest contract in the agency's history to overhaul its fleet of aircraft, boats and cutters, and tie all those assets together with a communications system that would promote efficiency and effectiveness. The same year, the Army let an equally expansive contract to develop suites
of ground, air and robotic weapons, linked by a communications system that would lift the fog of war and dramatically improve battlefield operations.
Today, both the Coast Guard's Deepwater contract and the one for the Army's Future Combat Systems are under fire for cost and schedule overruns and performance problems. In both cases, the agencies turned to lead systems integrators to manage complex multibillion-dollar programs that were to extend over decades. While the programs have very different technical requirements and different contractors - Deepwater is managed jointly by a consortium created by Lockheed Martin Corp. and Northrop Grumman Corp. called Integrated Coast Guard Systems; Future Combat Systems is managed jointly by Boeing Co. and SAIC - they've experienced similar problems. In both cases, government auditors say the agencies have failed in their oversight roles and given contractors too much leeway in determining requirements, selecting suppliers, managing subcontractors and validating performance, things traditionally done by government employees.
More at http://www.govexec.com/features/0807-15/0807-15s1.htm
