Search

The recent inclusion of stability operations as a core mission set (DODI 3000.05 and JP 3-07) for the U.S. military has highlighted the efforts operational commanders must consider when planning for the post-combat phase of a conflict in an underdeveloped state. The desired end-state of most stability operations includes a sustainable economy within the underdeveloped state. Operational commanders must plan to assist in setting the conditions necessary to achieve a sustainable economy. Sustainment in support of combat forces and infrastructure development tasks can be leveraged to help achieve the conditions necessary for a sustainable economy. The operational commander's lines of effort must include short-term and long-term procurement strategies, such as employment generation and contract incentives, to aid in the establishment of a sustainable economy. Joint doctrine also must incorporate these new strategies to institutionalize military contributions in achieving a sustainable economy in support of stability operations.

At the end of March 2005, the final students will graduate from the Air Force Institute of Technology's (AFIT) contracting graduate degree curricula -- consisting at various times of both contract management and strategic purchasing course sequences -- which have been relocated to the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS). With the end of the contracting graduate programs at AFIT, it is appropriate to ask what contributions AFIT theses have made to the contracting community. Scholars (e.g., Das and Hanfield, 1997) have argued that thesis and dissertation research is one useful method of determining contributions to the field. The author conducted a rigorous review of contracting-related theses done at AFIT to find out what contributions they have made to the contracting community and how future research, performed elsewhere, might continue to make contributions in the future. Through this study it was discovered that the majority of the contracting research conducted at AFIT pertained to purchasing planning, organization, policy, and personnel. There has been little research done on commercial purchasing issues, such as buyer-supplier relationship and supply chain integration. The majority of the research performed was in exploratory study format using mostly case studies, interviews, and surveys to collect data. The most common data analysis techniques used were descriptive statistics (36%) followed by anecdotal evidence (18%), "other" (16%), and modeling/simulation (15%)., The original document contains color images.