New findings reveal growing momentum in acquisition reform – alongside persistent challenges to achieving faster, more flexible, and scalable outcomes.
2026 State of Warfighting Acquisition Survey
Download Survey Results
MITRE’s 2026 State of Warfighting Acquisition Survey offers a second-year benchmark of how stakeholders across the industrial base view ongoing transformation efforts. Based on input from more than 1,200 participants spanning government, industry, and academia, the findings highlight growing confidence and measurable momentum – particularly around speed and delivery of capability – while underscoring persistent structural and workforce challenges. Together, the results point to cautious optimism: progress is underway, but consistent, system-wide outcomes have yet to be fully realized.
Survey Methodology
The 2026 State of Warfighting Acquisition Survey was conducted by Atomik Research on behalf of MITRE and captures insights from 1,235 stakeholders across the U.S. industrial base, including government, private sector, and academic participants. Fielded online between March 13 and March 31, 2026, the survey reflects a broad cross section of perspectives, with a margin of error of ±3 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.