A force of functional and technical subject matter experts (SMEs) assembled in an adaptive environment to research, develop, and experiment with military technologies.

By utilizing a combination of recently separated veterans and technical SME’s, the Adaptive Experimentation Force (AEF) connects the ideation phase of the R&D process with the successful delivery of a working product through requirement, development, and experimentation by personnel who have experience with warfighters’ requirements for equipment. Incorporating recently separated veterans into the real-world testing of solutions prior to prototype delivery saves time and money allowing for rapid solution delivery.

Defining requirements and challenging technology early in the innovation process allows for malleable products that can easily change to meet newly discovered requirements in the field. DoD development and acquisition programs require a holistic solution to intake innovation ideas from warfighters, incubate those ideas, and involve technical and functional experts in the requirements framing, testing, and evaluating process.

Functional requirements are presented and analyzed by the in-house veteran and currently serving work force who have the experience in deployment and training environments. This force will consist of recently separated veterans, who have the experiences necessary to understand the needs of the warfighter end-user.

A technical SME force assesses technical requirements. The technical expert force will identify, test, and challenge the initial concepts and prototypes of products. While the veteran workforce focuses on the warfighter’s functional requirements for new technology, the focus of the technical SME force is on the mechanical and scientific process requirements of technology prior to the prototyping and testing phases.