Who has the training…?

All the big money is in programs, and programs are run on requirements, so per the DoD’s own mandates who has the required training to execute the requirements process? While many people might point to the program offices themselves, the primary source of requirements management is at the headquarters level in the applicable “5” division. The “5” is the requirements management office for the entire organization that the headquarters is commanding. You need to start the conversation at the “5” division when trying to determine “why” a particular current capability exists, or “how” to create or modify a capability for that organization.

As you can see from the diagram the JCIDS process is complex, and the associated paperwork and timelines are non-trivial. Make sure if you are a commercial business working with a government partner you ask them early in the process, “how are you working this effort into your organization’s requirements?” If you are a government person starting a new innovation project, you need to be able to answer that question and facilitate that process with your Command’s requirement office. Neglecting the requirements discussion is the best guarantee of funding starvation in the “valley of death” for DoD acquisition.

Who do you know that needs this info?
Tag them in a comment below 👇