Leadership of defense reform effort changes hands

The Pentagon's Defense Reform Initiative is moving to a new office under a new leader, Defense Secretary William Cohen announced Tuesday.

DRI operations, which had been under Cohen's direct supervision in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, have been moved to the Office of Acquisition Reform. Stan Z. Soloway, deputy undersecretary of Defense for acquisition reform, will take charge of the DRI while maintaining his other duties.

"We jump-started implementation by placing DRI directly in my office, but to maintain momentum, this initiative must be part of the department's daily operations," Cohen said.

The move makes sense because the Acquisition Reform Office is already involved in a number of reform initiatives, Cohen said. Soloway will assume DRI responsibilities from former DRI director William Houley.