From Legacy to Lethal: DISA’s Mission to Turn Tech Debt into Warfighting Power

Colonel Jeffrey Strauss of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) joins the program to discuss one of the Department of Defense’s most urgent challenges: technical debt. Colonel Strauss explains how divesting from legacy technology—sometimes as granular as removing individual network cards—frees up capacity and resources that can be reinvested in modern solutions. He likens the effort to personal debt management: eliminating outdated systems piece by piece to enable a stronger, more agile future.

Francis and Colonel Strauss explore how DISA measures progress in this effort, emphasizing operational readiness, risk reduction, and the agency’s ability to meet evolving cyber threats. Strauss challenges vendors to think beyond flashy, short-term wins and instead align with the long-term strategy of building sustainable, backward-compatible technologies that match DISA’s pace and purpose. As he puts it, the payoff isn't just speed—it's capacity: the ability to go fast and do more, all while maintaining mission-critical readiness.

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