Small Businesses -- Essential to our Nation's Securty

The National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) recently released its "NDIA Top Issues 2011" annual report. Issue #3 is: "Increase Government Contract Usage of all Small Businesses." I can only offer my strongest endorsement of this matter.

Most of my colleagues, peers, and clients know that my focus has primarily been technology. After 25 years, at all levels of industry (engineer, project engineer, program manager, business development, Vice President, Corporate Vice President) I can sat categorically that, in order to meet today's technology challenges, the US Department of Defense needs small businesses more than ever. Here's why.

1) Small businesses are the premier source of innovation in today's market. This is widely recognized in the customer community. When a critical problem arises, requiring engineering or applied science, customers traditionally look to established small businesses.

2) Small businesses are better able to innovate, in shorter time and for less money, than large businesses such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.

3) Small businesses can make enormous strides with a small amount of funding, e.g., the $100K Phase 1 SBIR and the $400K Phase 2 SBIR contract amounts. Larger businesses won't even talk to you unless the discussion begins in the millions, or tens of millions, of dollars.

4) Small businesses spawning out of universities or other research institutions are hungrier, more nimble, and able to drive results in spite of deadlines or other non-technical obstacles.

So, I say, bravo to NDIA for its continuing advocacy of small business!

Stuxnet -- the "Second Greatest Story Ever Told" *

It has been almost impossible to miss the recent stories in the media, with leadership by the New York Times, about the Stuxnet worm and its impact on the Bashehr and Natanz nuclear enrichment facilities in Iran. There is no official estimate, either from the Iranians or the "purveyors" of Stuxnet, but the worm has no doubt cost the Iranians many billions of dollars and set back their bomb program by many years. The Israelis are privately reporting that the Iranian nuke program has been set back until at least 2015.

The attack had a second salvo, which most casual observers have missed; the Iranian scientists saddled with "fixing" the problem have been targeted by assassins; 2 of 3 attempts have been successful. No doubt this added element of terror has increased the burden on the Iranian government significantly.

The Times observed that the Stuxnet worm, developed by USA and Israel, with implied cooperation from the Germans (Siemens) and a stolen cryptographic key belonging to the Taiwainese, was released with the precision of a Marine sniper targeting an enemy at 2,000 yards. A tremendous amount of damage, and fear, inflicted on an enemy without the delivery of one bomb, missile, or traditional type of ordnance. Also, the impact of this computer worm is in stark contrast with the ineffectiveness of a decade or more of inspections by the United Nations.

There have been a lot of words written, and spoken, about cyber warfare and the threat from the Chinese to the USA. This threat remains very real. However, the Stuxnet worm makes it clear that the first truly successful salvo in cyberwarfare was lobbed by the USA and Israel; it was a direct hit. Stuxnet reveals the power of classified intelligence work. Think of how many lives will have been saved if it forestalls an Iranian nuclear bomb program by 5 years, or stops it altogether. It will be many years before the full value of this incident is known, but I expect that it will be as significant a development as the breaking of Nazi Germany's Enigma code system.

It also amplifies the positive impact of classified funding of national intelligence initiatives. The breadth of the program appears to have been extraordinary.

From a business perspective, therefore, as Congress cancels weapons and homeland security programs (e.g., the Virtual Fence) and cuts back on other traditional defense spending, you can be certain that intel spending will remain strong and vital.

* With credit to Hotair.com for this clever twist of words