Improving the Air Force
Scientific Discovery Mission
Leveraging Best Practices in Basic Research Management
A WORKSHOP REPORT
Committee on Improving the Air Force Scientific Discovery Mission:
Leveraging Best Practices in Basic Research Management:
A Workshop
Air Force Studies Board
Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, D.C.
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001
This is a report of work supported by Grant FA9550-14-1-0127 between the U.S. Air Force and the National Academy of Sciences. Any opinions, findings, or conclusions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-37830-7
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-37830-3
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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2015. Improving the Air Force Scientific Discovery Mission: Leveraging Best Practices in Basic Research Management: A Workshop Report. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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COMMITTEE ON IMPROVING THE AIR FORCE SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY MISSION: LEVERAGING BEST PRACTICES IN BASIC RESEARCH MANAGEMENT: A WORKSHOP
LARRY D. WELCH, Institute for Defense Anlyses, Chair
RITA R. COLWELL, University of Maryland, College Park
BLAISE J. DURANTE, U.S. Air Force (retired)
MELISSA FLAGG, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
BRENDAN B. GODFREY, University of Maryland, College Park
ZACHARY J. LEMNIOS, IBM Research Division
WILLIAM L. MELVIN, Georgia Tech Research Institute
PARVIZ MOIN, Stanford University
ROBIE I. SAMANTA ROY, Lockheed Martin Corporation
SUBHASH C. SINGHAL, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Staff
CARTER W. FORD, Program Officer
MARGUERITE E. SCHNEIDER, Administrative Coordinator
DIONNA C. ALI, Research Assistant
AIR FORCE STUDIES BOARD
DOUGLAS M. FRASER, Doug Fraser, LLC, Chair
DONALD C. FRASER, Charles Stark Draper Laboratory (retired), Vice Chair
BRIAN A. ARNOLD, U.S. Air Force (retired), Peachtree City, Georgia
ALLISON ASTORINO-COURTOIS, National Security Innovations, Inc.
TED F. BOWLDS, The Spectrum Group
STEVEN R.J. BRUECK, University of New Mexico
FRANK J. CAPPUCCIO, Cappuccio and Associates, LLC
BLAISE J. DURANTE, U.S. Air Force (retired)
MELISSA L. FLAGG, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
BRENDAN B. GODFREY, University of Maryland, College Park
MICHAEL A. HAMEL, Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company
DANIEL E. HASTINGS, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
RAYMOND E. JOHNS, JR., Flight Safety International
ROBERT H. LATIFF, R. Latiff Associates
NANCY G. LEVESON, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
MARK J. LEWIS, Institute for Defense Analyses, Science and Technology Policy Institute
ALEX MILLER, University of Tennessee
OZDEN OCHOA, Texas A&M University
RICHARD V. REYNOLDS, The VanFleet Group, LLC
STARNES E. WALKER, University of Delaware
DEBORAH WESTPHAL, Toffler Associates
DAVID A. WHELAN, Boeing Defense, Space, and Security
REBECCA WINSTON, Winston Strategic Management Consulting
MICHAEL I. YARYMOVYCH, Sarasota Space Associates
Staff
JOAN FULLER, Director
ALAN H. SHAW, Deputy Director
DIONNA C. ALI, Research Assistant
CARTER W. FORD, Program Officer
CHRIS JONES, Financial Manager
ANDREW J. KREEGER, Program Officer
MARGUERITE E. SCHNEIDER, Administrative Coordinator
Acknowledgment of Reviewers
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report:
Steven R.J. Brueck, University of New Mexico,
Donald R. Erbschloe, Air Mobility Command, U.S. Air Force,
Janet S. Fender, Air Combat Command, U.S. Air Force,
Daniel E. Hastings, Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
Chad A. Mirkin, Northwestern University, and
Lyle H. Schwartz, U.S. Air Force (retired).
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the views presented at the workshop, nor did they see the final draft of the workshop report before its release. The review of this workshop report was overseen by Robert J. Hermann, U.S. Air Force (retired), who was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this workshop report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the committee and the institution.
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Contents
Management Practices Considered in the Workshop
Recommendations from Previous Studies
2 WORKSHOP PARTICIPANT OBSERVATIONS AND KEY THEMES
Perspectives of a Former U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff
3 SYNOPSIS OF WORKSHOP SESSIONS
B Biographical Sketches of Committee Members
C Workshop Sessions and Speakers
D Excerpt from the Carl Levin National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015
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Acronyms
| AFOSR | Air Force Office of Scientific Research |
| AFRL | Air Force Research Laboratory |
| ASD(R&E) | Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering |
| DARPA | Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency |
| DDR&E | Office of the Director of Defense Research and Engineering |
| DoD | Department of Defense |
| DoE | Department of Energy |
| DTIC | Defense Technical Information Service |
| FFRDC | federally funded research and development center |
| IPA | Intergovernmental Personnel Act |
| IRB | Institutional Review Board |
| ISR | intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance |
| MAJCOM | major command |
| NRC | National Research Council |
| NSF | National Science Foundation |
| ONR | Office of Naval Research |
| OSD | Office of the Secretary of Defense |
| OSTP | Office of Science and Technology Policy |
| S&E | scientist and engineer |
| S&T | science and technology |
| SAF/AQR | Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Science, Technology, and Engineering |
| SES | Senior Executive Service Position |
| ST | scientific or professional position |
| STTR | Small Business Technology Transfer |
| UARC | University Affiliated Research Center |
| UCC | Unified Combat Command |
| USAFA | U.S. Air Force Academy |
| USD(AT&L) | Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics |
