Systems Planning & Analysis touts itself as a technical services provider charged with “helping clients move from strategy to action faster,” a tagline that also helps explain how mission timelines are shrinking fast.

Rich Sawchak, chief executive of Systems Planning & Analysis, joins for this episode to describe how companies like SPA have incorporated those faster timelines into how they support efforts in areas like simulation and countering unmanned aerial systems.

Artificial intelligence is of course entering the equation in those areas and more. In talking with our Ross Wilkers, Sawchak overviews where AI is being implemented full-steam ahead and places where these technologies are still hitting barriers.

One major theme of this conversation: SPA and all technical advisory services providers have to do more than just provide advice and knowledge to their clients on how to solve their problems.

Arlington Capital creates new middle tier player

Systems Planning and Analysis details chief executive transition

SPA makes another acquisition to build simulation and wargaming capabilities

SPA gains Army presence via acquisition

SPA acquires parts of ManTech's technical advisory business

Systems Planning & Analysis moves on another space-focused acquisition

SPA acquires space-focused systems engineering firm

Anduril and the Navy are co-investing in a submarine component production plant that the service branch is hoping can be a boost to the country’s shipbuilding capacity.

Lauren Williams, business editor at Defense One, has extensively covered the Navy’s challenges regarding its efforts to increase shipbuilding throughput and joins for this episode to explain how this new shipyard is a part of that push.

What keeps Navy leaders up at night on the shipbuilding front? In talking with our Ross Wilkers, Lauren goes over the constraints that have built up over time and recommendations government auditors made to address them.

Lauren also takes listeners through a $4 billion Army counterdrone contract that includes a mix of known and lesser-known names, why the Air Force is talking about a large unmanned aerial tanker when that tech is years away, and how the military is looking at quantum.

Lauren authors Defense One’s Business Brief newsletter that goes out every Thursday. Click this link to subscribe.

Point solutions have long dominated the government technology conversations, in part because agencies have focused on solving specific organizational problems instead of looking at them in a multi-functional way.

Mark Lee, chief executive of Entarian, joins for this episode to break down today’s federal market landscape as one where mission integration is where the conversation begins and ends with agencies. Technology still does enter the chat without being the be-all and end-all, as Lee tells our Ross Wilkers.

Lee also overviews the role of Entarian’s solution development team as the company’s engine for making mission integration happen for its customers and provides an update on the integration of Sev1Tech after both companies joined forces back in the spring.