Michael Duffey Earns 2026 Wash100 Recognition for Accelerating Defense Acquisition Reform, Strengthening the Industrial Base
Executive Mosaic is honored to recognize Michael Duffey, under secretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, as a 2026 Wash100 Award recipient for his leadership in transforming the Department of War’s acquisition enterprise, accelerating the delivery of critical capabilities to warfighters and reinforcing the resilience of the U.S. defense industrial base.
The prestigious Wash100 Award recognizes 100 exceptional leaders across the government and government contracting arena for their influence, strategic vision, notable achievements and anticipated contributions in the year ahead. Each annual Wash100 list spotlights executives of consequence who have demonstrated meaningful impact over the past year and are poised to continue advancing federal missions, innovation and national priorities.
Vote for Duffey as one of your favorite government industry leaders in the 2026 Wash100 Popular Vote Competition at Wash100.com.
Why Is Michael Duffey Winning the 2026 Wash100 Award?
“Under Secretary Duffey’s selection as a 2026 Wash100 Award winner is a meaningful recognition of the energy and determination he has brought to transforming defense acquisition since stepping into his role last year,” said Jim Garrettson, CEO of Executive Mosaic and founder of the Wash100 Award. “He has been a strong champion for building a more resilient industrial base and embracing faster, more flexible contracting approaches that better match today’s mission demands.”
“Duffey also helped drive the creation of new ‘program czar’ roles aimed at cutting through bureaucracy, streamlining performance and delivering results more efficiently. With his sharp focus on speed, accountability and mission success, he clearly embodies the Wash100 values of leadership, innovation and lasting impact,” Garrettson added.
Who Is Michael Duffey?
Confirmed by the Senate on June 3, 2025, and sworn in two days later, Duffey leads one of the Pentagon’s most consequential organizations. As USD(A&S), he oversees acquisition policy, logistics and sustainment, contract administration, materiel readiness, installations and environment, operational energy, nuclear deterrence, and industrial base security — a portfolio encompassing roughly $300 billion in annual contracts and a workforce of approximately 190,000 civilian and military professionals.
In an era defined by great power competition, supply chain fragility and rapidly evolving threats, Duffey’s role places him at the center of efforts to ensure the United States can deter, compete and prevail through speed, scale and sustained industrial capacity.
Driving Speed, Accountability & Reform Across Defense Acquisition
Since assuming office, Duffey has consistently emphasized the need to accelerate weapons procurement while preserving judgment around cost and performance. He has stressed that acquisition reform should not replace one rigid process with another, but instead empower leaders to make informed tradeoffs as requirements evolve.
“We’re continually going to be dependent on the judgment of program leaders who are executing these programs to understand where does the need for speed balance with the risk that we would undertake [for the] cost and or performance of the system,” Duffey said.
One of the most consequential shifts under Duffey’s watch has been the move away from traditional program executive offices toward portfolio acquisition executives. This approach provides senior leaders with broader visibility across mission areas, allowing them to balance funding, schedules and requirements across multiple programs instead of managing each system in isolation.
Speaking at the 2026 Defense R&D Summit on Jan. 29, Duffey urged industry and government leaders to rethink the traditional acquisition model, asking them to “imagine a different future…an arsenal of freedom built by acquisition agility.”
Duffey has also supported eliminating or streamlining time-intensive analysis processes, such as the analysis of alternatives, in favor of faster assessments of commercial technologies and competing prototypes — a move designed to keep pace with adversaries who are fielding new capabilities at unprecedented speed.
Strengthening the Defense Industrial Base
A central reason for Duffey’s Wash100 recognition is his sustained focus on defense industrial base strength and resilience. He has overseen expanded use of Defense Production Act Title III authorities to address supply chain bottlenecks and rebuild domestic manufacturing capacity in areas critical to national security.
During fiscal year 2025, the DOW awarded hundreds of millions of dollars in DPA Title III investments to support production of solid rocket motors, energetics, microelectronics and other critical components.
“With these strategic investments, we are fortifying our national security by expanding critical nodes of the SRM supply chain to accelerate munitions manufacturing,” Duffey said.
At the GovCon conference, he emphasized that rebuilding capacity is not only a national security imperative but also an opportunity to create predictable demand and incentivize industry investment. “With the supply chain and workforce required to develop and design these weapon systems, we know there’s a certain need for these systems over time. And enabling our industry partners to make investments and optimize how they’re doing business, I think, is a benefit to everybody,” said Duffey.
Cost Discipline, IT Oversight & Business Systems
Duffey’s portfolio also includes oversight of business systems and service contracts. In June 2025, he established a new review and approval process for certain IT consulting, management and advisory contracts, implementing a directive from the defense secretary focused on leveraging in-house capabilities and controlling costs.
Career Background & National Security Experience
Duffey brings more than two decades of experience across the Pentagon, the White House and the private sector. Prior to his confirmation as USD(A&S), he served as a partner at Equinox Global Solutions, a government consulting firm.
He was also appointed program associate director for national security at the Office of Management and Budget, where he helped oversee a budget exceeding $1 trillion and long-term investment priorities, such as shipbuilding and nuclear modernization.
Earlier roles include deputy chief of staff to the secretary of defense, chief of staff to the under secretary of defense for research and engineering, and multiple roles within the former Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology.
Looking Ahead
Through governance reform, industrial base investment and a sustained focus on balancing speed with affordability, Duffey is shaping how the DOW acquires, produces and sustains the capabilities needed for future conflicts.
Executive Mosaic congratulates Michael Duffey on his 2026 Wash100 recognition and looks forward to his continued leadership across the defense acquisition enterprise.
Cast your vote for Michael Duffey for the 2026 Wash100 Popular Vote Competition!