Policy and Standards Alignment
Note: Subsequent research should examine the Digital Backbone required to sustain the ARA, GRA, and CRA within the wider Digital Engineering Ecosys- tem. This backbone will support the in- terconnected software, sub-ecosystems that enable model communication and future acquisition sustainment. SINGH is a practicing systems engineer and a professor of Systems Engineering at the Warfighting Acquisition University. Her ex- pertise spans digital engineering, compliance architecture, and the application of big data and machine learning to streamline large- scale engineering efforts. She holds a doc- torate in Applied Computing from Pace Uni- versity, an MBA, and degrees in information systems. The author can be contacted at Anandi.Signh@waru.edu. The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the Department of War. Reproduction or reposting of articles from Defense Acquisition magazine should credit the authors and the magazine.
sistency, interoperability, and reuse across acquisition for both govern - ment and industry. The ARA can serve as the “rules of the road” for acquiring systems in the digital age. This structured yet flexible approach will substantially increase acquisition speed and quality, posi - tioning the Department to meet fu - ture mission demands with greater agility and capability. The ARA repre - sents not simply a technical solution, but a catalytic enabler for future digi - tal engineering across the defense en - terprise. To resolve these challenges, the Department, Chief Information Officer, the Under Secretary for Ac - quisition and Sustainment, the Under Secretary for Research and Engineer - ing, and the Joint Staff should jointly develop the ARA framework.
The ARA directly supports DoD In - struction 5000.88, Engineering of De- fense Systems (2020), which requires integrated systems engineering, mis - sion engineering, and technical risk management. By embedding regula - tions, standards such as the Modular Open Systems Approach, Sensor Open Systems Architecture, IEEE, and Zero Trust, along with best practices, into the architecture, the ARA reduces com- pliance uncertainty for both govern - ment and industry users. Conclusion The ARA provides the essential missing link for effective digital ac - quisition. By creating a clear, stan - dardized, layered framework—ARA → GRA → CRA—the DoW can drive con -
Operationally, the ARA enables flexible, cost-efficient scaling across acquisition programs and provides a centralized repository of reusable model components. It also encourages faster development by allowing smaller, focused teams to work more effectively, improving fault tolerance while decreasing long-term costs.
SEPTEMBER –OCTOBER 2026 | DEFENSE ACQUISITION MAGAZINE 19
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