Preserving capacity, General Tom Lawson, Chief of the Defence Staff, Keys to Canadian SAR
Issue link: http://vanguardcanada.uberflip.com/i/155544
P Procurement A different dynamic Executive engagement on defence procurement As the organization in National Defence responsible for procurement and management of all materiel, the 4,500-person Materiel Group oversees a massive program of acquisition, in-service support, and defence-specific regulation of defence equipment. With the introduction of secretariats at Public Works and Government Services to coordinate several major defence projects, including the shipbuilding strategy, the next-generation fighter replacement and fixed-wing search and rescue, has its role changed? Rear-Admiral Patrick Finn, Chief of Staff to the Assistant Deputy Minister (Material), has had a lengthy career in project management, including most recently on the Joint Support Ship and the Canadian Surface Combatant. He spoke with Vanguard about the impact of recent changes. Q How has greater reliance on secretariats affected the role ADM(MAT)? The Canada Defence First Strategy is still a very active document that laid out a 20-year roadmap. Although it is a few years old, we are only at the beginning of what is a fundamental recapitalization of the Canadian Armed Forces. The strategy gives us a real roadmap, probably better than we have had in a very long time, and we are moving out on it. A lot of the changes, such as secretariats and third-party monitors, have come about because we have gone from working on one major project, 10 years ago, to now having between 15 and 20 major Crown projects and a significant number of major capital projects underway. The effect of the secretariats and other things has really been to help us facilitate and move out on the strategy. Q Is there a concern, though, about retaining the military's role in procurement, especially over requirements, as more players are introduced? 30 AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2013 www.vanguardcanada.com