The Government Accountability Office has called on the Defense Department to establish a department-wide strategy that will guide prototyping initiatives.GAO said Tuesday DoD’s prototyping efforts face challenges such as limited funds, a risk-averse culture and competing priorities.
DoD has yet to develop a strategy that outlines prototyping goals and priorities as well as roles and responsibilities, which could result to “unproductive or poorly coordinated” investments, GAO noted.
The congressional watchdog also urged DoD to implement a funding strategy to address budget challenges facing prototype development efforts.
Prototyping projects compete for DoD funds specifically with acquisition programs, GAO said.
The agency noted that the “strategic bucket” approach could help address funding issues through the allocation of resources to various types of projects based on an organization’s strategy.
