Organizing for Success

Why Many Government Software Factories Are Dying While Others Are Thriving

In the era of rapid digital transformation, organizations need to adapt and evolve to stay competitive and relevant. One such organization facing these challenges is the Department of Defense (DoD). To enhance mission outcomes and achieve organizational success, the DoD must prioritize Value Stream Management, Theory of Constraints, and Wardley Mapping.

This paper delves into these three critical concepts and how they can be applied to improve the DoD’s bureaucratic structure and overall performance. Improving the delivery of software to warfighters across the DoD does not begin with technology, COTS product integration, or even the DevOps architecture. Successful organizations, even those that may have led transformations with technology, have first stepped back and revectored their efforts to align around their value streams.

Topics
Software Delivery & Architecture · Leadership
Formats
epub · pdf
License
Creative Commons BY-NC-SA

About the authors

11 authors
Trent HoneVice President, ICF

Affiliation as of 2026-09-07

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Gene KimFounder, Author, Researcher, IT Revolution

Affiliation as of 2026-08-31

Gene Kim has been studying high-performing technology organizations since 1999. He was the founder and CTO of Tripwire, Inc., an enterprise security software company, where he served for 13 years. His books have sold over 1 million copies—he is the WSJ bestselling author of The Unicorn Project and The Phoenix Project Graphic Novels , and co-author of The Phoenix Project , The DevOps Handbook , Vibe Coding , and the Shingo Publication Award-winning books Accelerate and Wiring the Winning Organization . Since 2014, he has been the organizer of DevOps Enterprise Summit (now Enterprise Technology Leadership Summit and Enterprise AI Summit), studying the technology transformations of large, complex organizations.

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Dr. Steve SpearSenior Lecturer, MIT Sloan; Founder, See to Solve

Affiliation as of 2026-08-31

Dr. Steven J. Spear (DBA MS MS) is principal for HVE LLC, the award-winning author of The High-Velocity Edge, and patent holder for the See to Solve Real Time Alert System. A Senior Lecturer at MIT’s Sloan School and a Senior Fellow at the Institute, Dr. Spear’s work focuses on accelerating learning dynamics within organizations so that they know better and faster what to do and how to do it. This has been informed and tested in practice in multiple industries including heavy industry, high tech design, biopharm R&D, healthcare delivery and other social services, US Army rapid equipping, and US Navy readiness.

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Col. Brian BeachkofskiChief Technology Officer, Rithmm

Affiliation as of 2026-09-07

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LtCol Max ReeleDirector of Delivery, Rise8

Affiliation as of 2026-09-04

Max Reele is the Director of Delivery at Rise8. Having been a digital transformation leader in the public sector for many years, his primary experience is in managing advanced technology programs to meet operational mission needs. During a twenty-year Air Force career, he was formerly the Service Lead at Defense Innovation Unit and Deputy Commander at the USAF’s Kessel Run software delivery organization.

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Captain Jay LongCo-Founder & COO, Parlay Protocol

Affiliation as of 2026-09-01

Jay Long is an Innovation Officer in the US Special Operations Command's Army Reserve Element and the Founder/COO of Parlay, a fintech company expanding access to capital for underserved small businesses. His military experience includes service in Afghanistan and Korea. He has served as a Nonresident Fellow at the Modern War Institute and advised organizations including the Defense Innovation Board and Naval Postgraduate School on emerging technologies.

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Major Jesse Cooper
Rick JackTechnical Director, BrainGu

Affiliation as of 2026-09-07

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LtCom Andres OteroOfficer in Charge, Naval Information Warfare Center Atlantic

Affiliation as of 2026-09-07

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LtCol John SchreinerCyber Warfare Leader & Defense Tech Author
Col Jeff WorthingtonExecutive Strategist, CrowdStrike

Affiliation as of 2026-09-07

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