The United States Military had been forced by the operations undertaken in Iraq and Afghanistan to develop contracting requirements and procurement procedures on the fly. Much of the peacetime practices were not up to speed in managing a growing conflict in two different theaters; and the burden fell on many individuals who were not specifically trained to deal with an expeditionary set of contracting requirements.

The U.S. Army, having to shoulder much of the rebuilding process in Iraq in addition to maintaining combat operations, was forced to come up with a solution to a long-term commitment of hundreds of billions of American taxpayer dollars. Army Materiel Command, or AMC, was the parent command for an enormous chunk of the spending that was being handled by authorities both overseas and in the United States in support of operations. Thinking long term, AMC created a subordinate command to specifically deal with day-to-day contracting for the U.S. Army, and Army Contracting Command (ACC) was born.

ACC is a workforce of contracting officers who are trained and groomed to procure and contractual obligate the Army’s funds in the most efficient manner. The acquisition process is vital to the function of the Armed Forces. ACC has become the backbone for fielding goods and services out to units deployed and those in home station.

Jeff Parsons serves as the first Executive Director of ACC and is responsible for the annual $100 billion in contracts for the U.S. Army or roughly 60 percent of the Army's contracts. He speaks in this podcast about the growth, development and processes that have taken shape in the second year of ACC’s existence.