By Mike Dodd, USMC (Ret.)
“I want YOU”. It’s the ubiquitous advertisement from World War I. Uncle Sam is pointing his index finger forward, seemingly pointing at everyone to step up and serve. Illustrator James Flagg designed the iconic Army recruiting poster.
It’s time for Indianapolis business leaders to take that poster and its message to heart. No, I’m not suggesting that you head to your local recruiting office—I’ll save my pitch to join the U.S. Marine Corps for another time (though if interested, the adventure of a lifetime starts here: 1-800-MARINES). But we all can serve our country by offering our goods and services for sale to the Department of Defense (DoD). It should come as no surprise that DoD has enormous buying power with a budget nearing a trillion dollars. If the Department was a country, it would be the 19th largest economy in the world. Read those last two sentences a few times and let that sink in.
Indianapolis has a decent defense footprint. Industry leaders like Rolls Royce, Raytheon, Vertex, and V2X all have impressive facilities in the city. Statewide, we have companies like AM General, L3Harris, General Dynamics and SAIC doing significant business in Indiana.
Indiana, and our capital city, has millions, even billions, in revenue and jobs to be gained by participating more widely in the defense sector. However, our state’s participation does not just benefit Hoosiers. This isn’t just jobs and revenue gained, our national security is at stake.
“The U.S. is in one of the most dangerous situations since World War Two.” Said John Keast, staff director of the United States Senate Committee on Armed Services, who was speaking at Rep. Jim Banks’ Northeast Indiana Defense Summit in Ft. Wayne in August. The threats include Russia, Iran, China, North Korea and non-state actors like Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis. Keast emphasized, “The threat environment is real. Deterrence is the key.”
Deterrence comes from using every available innovative resource we must help defend our nation. Weapons systems are necessary, but the vast resources required in this modern era include capabilities derived from new cyber platforms, drone technology, and even the pharmaceutical industry—Eli Lilly ranks as one of the top Indiana suppliers of goods to DoD.
“We need to be on a wartime footing,” explained Chris Kubasik at the Northeast Indiana Defense Summit. Kubasik is CEO of L3Harris, the sixth largest defense contractor in the nation. L3Harris has some 600 employees in Indiana.
Indiana businesses far beyond the major DoD primes have a role in providing solutions to DoD requirements. If the product or service you're selling falls in to the critical technology areas of the DoD, technologies like trusted AI and autonomy, microelectronics, space technology, advanced computing and software and biotechnology, the DoD should be on your list of target markets. If your product or service is commercially available and you’re ready to sell, teaming with a prime government contractor—or multiple other non-traditional contractors--is a great way to get your foot in the door. If you still need some research and development, the government will often fund these activities in a non-dilutive fashion and at the end of development you still own the intellectual property.
We are fortunate to have a premier Navy laboratory just 90 minutes from Indianapolis. Naval Surface Warfare, Crane Division (NSWC Crane) is one of just a handful of federal labs working on some of the toughest national security challenges including microelectronics and hypersonics.
Crane Army Ammunition Activity recently announced it is seeking more public-private partnerships. And the Indiana National Guard has globally recognized training and testing facilities like Mascatatuck Training Center and Camp Atterbury.
The presence of our military installations coupled with Indiana’s great research universities including Purdue University, Indiana University, and Notre Dame, make our state ripe for innovation and defense-related economic development. Again, this isn’t just about business, it’s about helping the national cause— to protect our nation and the world.
“A stronger America means a stronger and more peaceful world,” explained Purdue University president, Dr. Mung Chiang. Purdue isn’t just one of the top engineering schools in the world, with top-tier faculty and state-of-the-art testing and evaluation facilities, it’s also a go-to for DoD research and development activities.
James Flagg, the turn-of-the-century illustrator behind the “We Want You” ad designed another poster in 1917, it’s less well-known but, more than a hundred years later, its message couldn’t be more relevant. It reads, “Together We Win” and features two members of the military walking arms linked with an American tradesman. Indeed, if our business community and military work together seamlessly, like in World Wars I and II, today, once more, together we win!
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