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to participate in future surveys or follow-up interviews, which could be valuable for future research efforts. Complementary research avenues also appear fruitful for further exploring contractor participation in the DIB. First, although the purpose of this study was to examine the rationale for why contractors are no longer participating in the DIB, those contractors that have persisted long term could probably provide valuable insights into the DIB ecosystem as well. To that end, a systematic survey of prime contractors that have remained in the DIB is certainly worth undertaking, especially to further investigate the relative importance of Cybersecurity and Intellectual Property issues. Second, as mentioned in the introduction, a holistic attempt at examining the declining DIB would also address the issue of DIB entrants to ascertain what is effective from a contractor perspective and what more can be done to attract new contractors. Finally, suggestions have emerged that the DIB decline is more of a reversion to the mean after a significant growth in contractors in the late 2000s and early 2010s (i.e., a popping of the DIB bubble). Therefore, expanding the research time frame for all efforts to incorporate more historical years would be beneficial for understanding the nature and extent of the ‘shrinking’ DIB over time. Conclusion A robust DIB is fundamental to ensure that proper and sufficient resources are available for warfighting capabilities and strategies. The persistent decline in the number of prime contractors is therefore a potentially worrisome trend. This study empirically examined the issue by conducting a survey of contractors likely to have exited between FY 2015 to FY 2022 to ascertain if they left the DIB and, if so, why that was the case. To the authors’ knowledge, this study is a rare attempt to assess the nature of the shrinking DIB using primary data collected from contractors that have left the DIB. The responses highlighted the varied reality facing many companies; some had DoD-specific challenges and negative experiences, while some are still participating as potential suppliers in the DIB or left for reasons not related to DoD. The results therefore provide unique, empirical insight into an issue that is of critical concern to the defense acquisition community.
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Defense ARJ, Summer 2025, Vol. 32 No. 2: 194—223
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