The Crumblestones of Acquisition: Overview (Part 1)

Serialized from Contracting for Rapid Acquisition: A Practical and Personal Guide to Disrupting the Status Quo for a More Responsive Future by Lorna E. Tedder

In my last series of articles, you met the Trifecta of Effectiveness—tools, mindset, and relationships. That trio forms the foundation for any effective organization, especially in the world of acquisition.

Even the strongest foundation can’t hold up a collapsing structure if other critical supports are breaking down. Over the years, I’ve noticed a pattern—six of them, in fact. No matter the size of the organization, the mission, or the budget, these same six structural weaknesses show up time and again. At first, I thought it was just my team or my customers. After I left DoD and began consulting across agencies—defense, civilian, and even international—I kept seeing the same issues. Over and over.

What started as casual observations during my years running a Rapid Acquisition office (2012–2018) became a repeatable diagnostic tool during my time consulting and later working with an FFRDC. I could walk into any troubled contracting issue and usually spot the pressure points immediately. They were always within the same six categories.

I didn’t know what to call them at first—were they problems? Pillars? Showstoppers? Cornerstones? But I knew one thing: when any one of them crumbled, the ability to move fast was the first casualty. These weren’t cornerstones so much as crumblestones, which is what I came to call them.

Picture a five-sided building with a cornerstone at each outer edge and one at the center. If one or two of the outer stones start to crack, you can maybe keep going for a while. If that center stone starts to crumble, though? The whole structure begins to sag. That central support—often the most overlooked and the most difficult to reinforce—is what keeps the entire acquisition effort from collapsing under its own weight.

These aren’t just minor hiccups. They’re persistent, often invisible stress points that make it difficult—if not impossible—for acquisition professionals to move fast, make smart decisions, and deliver results. While these problems reside on the government’s side of the table, contractors often suffer the consequences: unclear requirements, missed deadlines, endless reviews, and conflicting directions.

The six Crumblestones I’ll share in this series are:

1. Contracting Culture Issues – Embedded habits, fears, and misunderstandings about risk and authority that paralyze innovation.
2. Communication Gaps – The voids between program, contracting, legal, finance, and leadership that result in misalignment and delays.
3. Governance Constraints – Layers of oversight and unclear roles that slow decisions and muddy accountability.
4. Faulty Requirements Handoffs – Where good ideas go to die—miscommunication or mistranslation between mission needs and contract language.
5. Lack of Appropriate Tracking Systems – When spreadsheets masquerade as data strategies, and no one can measure progress or predict risk.
6. Resource Constraints – Chronic understaffing, untrained personnel, and a lack of bandwidth that overburdens high performers and drives burnout.

I’ll cover each of these in depth. My goal isn’t just to name the problems but to show how the Trifecta of Effectiveness (tools, mindset, and relationships) can help reinforce each crumbling pillar, restoring stability where it’s needed most.

Whether you’re a government insider, a contractor trying to understand your customer’s chaos, or someone in academia teaching acquisition theory, understanding these six Crumblestones will change how you approach the business of getting things done.

Next up: why Contracting Culture is more than a mindset issue—it’s a structural anchor that can sink even the best strategy.