When Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said, “The defense acquisition system as you know it is dead,” it wasn’t a sound bite. It was a signal.
The Warfighting Acquisition System (WAS) doesn’t just mark a new chapter. It closes the book on an era defined by compliance theater and process-first thinking. It’s a direct call to focus on mission outcomes—Rise8’s ethos from day one: stop measuring success by compliance and start measuring by what actually matters: outcomes in production.
For decades, the system was optimized to avoid risk—not deliver value. The incentives propped up documentation over data, sign-offs over software, and slide decks over users. And while intentions may have been good, the result was inevitable: a lot of activity with very little validated progress.
That playbook can’t survive the pace or complexity of today’s threats.
The new model? It demands continuous delivery, empowered teams, and tight feedback loops. Not in theory. In production.
At Rise8, that’s not a pivot—it’s our operating system. We build software the way the mission demands: fast, focused, and always learning.
(Need help navigating the new acquisition landscape? Our FAQs break it down.)
From Compliance to Consequence
This is more than reform—it’s a fundamental shift in how value is defined.
- From milestone obsession to mission effects
Programs are no longer measured by how many documents they produce. The metric is: are users better off? - From gatekeeping to iteration
Speed is no longer a luxury; it’s a requirement. An 85% solution deployed now is worth infinitely more than a perfect one that arrives too late. - From rigid architectures to adaptive systems
Open, modular tech built with modern DevSecOps practices is how real teams stay ahead of evolving threats.
The WAS introduces a system that learns operationally, continuously, and at scale.
Speed to Outcomes: The New IDIQ Imperative
The contractors who can operate inside the loop, who can learn faster than the threat evolves, will set the standard for the next era of acquisition.
In this new environment, Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract vehicles are no longer just a contracting tool. They’re the engine of iteration.
Every task order is a delivery loop:
- Start fast – Stand up empowered, full-stack teams in days, not months.
- Deliver incrementally – Ship usable capability early and often.
- Learn and adapt – Use production feedback to drive each new release.
Speed to outcome is now the performance metric that matters. Vendors who can’t operate inside the mission loop will fall behind. The ones who can learn faster than the threat evolves? They’ll define the next era of defense tech.
Built for this Moment
The institutionalization of the Software Acquisition Pathway (SWP) makes this shift permanent. As the mandatory default for all software procurements, SWP sets an aggressive benchmark: deliver a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) in under a year.
And while that may feel ambitious for vendors accustomed to multi-year delivery timelines, Rise8 partners with your team to make it real. We enable game-changing outcomes in production in 180 days or less, including our fastest greenfield to Authorization to Operate (ATO) in just 57 days.
Rise8’s delivery model is fully SWP-compatible, built around short feedback loops, continuous integration, and measurable outcomes in production.
Here’s how the old model compares to the one that delivers:
When teams are empowered to deliver small, learn fast, and iterate, outcomes accelerate. Risk goes down. And the software actually reflects what the mission needs.
(Read more about how We Ship Outcomes.)
The Outcome Loop
Delivery now looks like this:
- Deliver small – Get something usable into the field fast.
- Learn continuously – Capture real feedback from real users.
- Adapt instantly – Reprioritize and deploy inside the mission loop.
- Measure what matters – Focus on time saved, risks reduced, adoption, and mission impact.
Because software that doesn’t reach production doesn’t matter. Outcomes in production are the only metric that counts. Or as we say, “prod, or it didn’t happen.”
Adapt or Fade
This new system doesn’t reward rhetoric. It rewards reps.
The next generation of IDIQs will favor learning organizations that can ship, listen, and evolve in real-time. Process-optimized players will get left behind. Outcome-optimized teams will lead.
The message is clear: acquisition is over. Delivery lives.
If you’re ready to build at the speed of the mission, we’re already there. Connect with Rise8 to learn how to thrive under the new WAS, build outcome-driven teams, and deliver at mission speed.
We don’t just ship software.
We ship outcomes.
