Continuous Competition as an Approach to Maximize Performance

Research shows that continuing competitive pressure applied during development and production leads to better industry performance, often at reduced cost. However, the entrenched practice of one-time competition for an entire program life-cycle often endows the winner with a very strong monopolistic power that lasts for decades. This paper describes continuous competition as leverage to acquire more effective results. It offers an alternative method for continuous competition—Multi-sourcing with Distributed Awards—under an applicable set of conditions and an appropriate business case. Summary: When competition is continually present, industry responds with their best team and more agility, and the Government is a more informed consumer. This paper addresses continuous competition as leverage to buy more effective and affordable systems.