APRIL 11, 2024 – In a move to streamline technology transitions, Heidi Shyu, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, has inaugurated the Transition Tracking Action Group (TTAG). This advisory body, established March 13, is set to harness advanced data analytics to track how the Department of Defense (DoD) delivers capabilities to the field.
Chaired by the R&E’s chief data officer, Cyrus Jabbari, and comprising senior representatives from the military services and offices under the Secretary of Defense, TTAG aims to improve the visibility and management of the DoD’s technology transition processes. The goal of this initiative seeks to ensure the timely and cost-effective delivery of state-of-the-art systems and equipment to military personnel. To do this, the department will seek understand what the primary obstacles to transition are and if the measures it undertakes to improve outcomes are yielding desired effects.
The TTAG will create a department-wide method to track technology transition and determine the reasons capability-enhancing technologies do or do not transition, to enable the Joint Force to deter and, if necessary, prevail in contested environments.
By leveraging data analytics, which incorporates artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), the DoD can gain a comprehensive overview of its business practices. This approach enables data scientists to utilize insights to refine these practices and enhance performance. The adoption of AI/ML technologies is particularly vital for the DoD’s science, technology, and acquisition communities, facilitating the delivery of the most effective solutions directly to the warfighter.
Jabbari highlighted the current challenges within the DoD’s data systems and business processes, which hamper the optimal tracking of technology transition outcomes and investments.
“Lack of visibility impedes efficiency and delivery of the best capabilities for troops and the Joint Force,” Jabbari said. The TTAG, through its focus on advanced analytics data platforms, aims to align the department’s efforts towards common goals.
The group’s charter outlines three primary objectives: identifying opportunities and barriers in tracking technology transitions, employing data to monitor these transitions, and developing requisite processes and policies. These efforts are geared toward enhancing the oversight of technology transitions throughout their lifecycle, from research and development to deployment.
The TTAG is part of a broader series of initiatives laid out by the Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks to systemically map and tackle the highest barriers in the defense innovation. It is a whole-of-department effort for digital transformation and effective adoption of advanced analytics to empower the technology, acquisition, and end-user communities, capitalizing on progress made in recent years.
With data that is now accessible and connected, the department is already reaping the benefits of advanced analytics to understand its engagement with the defense innovation ecosystem. “We can now parse through trillions of dollars and billions of lines of research and development funding spent over the years from lab to prototype and across educational institutions and non-traditional businesses and see the impact they are having on these key stakeholders,” Jabbari said. This capability has shed light on the impact of the department’s investments over the years, revealing a positive trend in engaging innovative and small businesses and those same businesses securing private capital for maturation and scale.
These examples, Jabbari said, are only small advances in what advanced analytics can do. As TTAG becomes more adept, the department will benefit even more from what advanced analytics can offer, he said.
The TTAG will enable the department to track the alignment of technological investments with the warfighter’s needs, offering unprecedented enterprise-wide visibility and responding to a decades-long gap.
“Our goal is to help the Department of Defense connect data systems to create a common operating picture, which will help deliver the right capability to the Joint Force,” Jabbari added. “This initiative will not only facilitate the delivery of the right capabilities to the Joint Force but also ensure efficient stewardship of taxpayer funds.”
TTAG’s responsibilities encompass determining policy updates and data source revisions for tracking technology transitions, conducting research and analysis to map data relationships across the R&E lifecycle, and addressing priority tracking issues as mandated by its members or higher authority.
For additional details on TTAG’s structure and operations, interested parties are encouraged to review the group’s charter here.