Pete Hegseth Overhauls Pentagon Acquisition to Prioritize Speed

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced a comprehensive overhaul of the U.S. military's acquisition and requirements processes during a November 7, 2025, address at the National War College in Washington. Implementing an April executive order from President Donald Trump, Hegseth aims to shift the Department of War to a "wartime footing" by prioritizing speed and volume over technical perfection and cost. He argued that an "85% solution" delivered immediately is superior to a perfect one delayed by endless testing.

The reforms eliminate the Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System (JCIDS) and introduce Portfolio Acquisition Executives (PAEs) with direct authority over major programs to remove bureaucratic approval layers. Hegseth is also transitioning to a "commercial-first" approach, favoring off-the-shelf products and smaller, faster contracts over multi-year projects for large platforms. To consolidate domestic and foreign systems, control of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency is moving from Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby to Undersecretary Michael Duffey.

Hegseth warned defense contractors that they must adopt a culture of agility or "fade away," demanding that large primes invest their own capital to increase production speed. While Senator Roger Wicker and industry leaders praised the urgency of these changes as essential for deterring China and Russia, expert Todd Harrison warned that bypassing traditional contractors could reduce transparency and increase the risk of equipment failure.