DoD is beginning a period of ostensibly serious performance review of the department’s several contractors.

Michael Duffey, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment:

We have completed initial reviews to assess company performance as part of this executive order and will now undergo an extended period of review in which we will make noncompliance determinations[.]
Following the upcoming decision period, we will be in touch with identified companies to begin remediation plans[.]

And this from Sean Parnell, Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs:

If progress doesn’t continue to be made, we will take enforcement actions. The Department of War will partner with those who perform—and hold accountable those who do not.

This has been a long time coming, assuming it’ll truly be a serious assessment with truly serious outcomes. If DoD is serious, then included high on that list of remediation plans should be cancelation of contracts. If the contractor has been noncomplying for some period of time, the cancelation and subsequent opportunity costs will be limited to the scofflaw business; there would be no loss to DoD from the contractor management team’s decision to fail to perform, and the losses to us taxpayers would be capped at what’s already been wasted on the scofflaws.

Remediation progress should be assessed on short time frames with closely spaced major milestones and a firm, nearby deadline for finally coming into full compliance. That compliance measure also should include concrete, measurable plans for staying in compliance and blocking drift away from requirements.

Shirking and throwing the contractor’s metaphorical shoes up on the desk, calling it job well done, and collecting us taxpayers’ money must be at an end. The only way to promote that is to be draconian in the department’s corrective actions. Pour encouragement des autres. Or, to fit today’s environment, il est bon de résilier un contrat avec un prestataire de temps en temps pour encourager les autres.