Making Military Cloud a Success: Critical Next Steps for DoD’s IT Strategy

Hudson Institute’s Task Force on Federal IT Procurement, with sponsorship from Oracle and Microsoft, hosted a discussion on next steps and alternative models the U.S. Department of Defense should consider to make its ambitious cloud strategy a reality. Hudson Senior Fellow William Schneider discussed these topics and more with Hudson Senior Fellow Dr. Arthur Herman and Dr. Fred Schneider, Cornell University professor and founding chairman of the National Academies Forum on Cyber Resilience.

After an 18-month procurement process, DoD recently released its long-awaited strategy for buying cloud services. While the strategy highlights the ability of cloud technology to organize, analyze, and scale critical military information, questions remain as to how the Pentagon will protect its cloud data, keep up with industry innovation, and digitally interact with allies. DoD currently has an opportunity to reassess its approach to acquiring cloud services, ensuring that the migration of military data to a new architecture prioritizes security, interoperability, and innovation.