BES and Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Announce BESPIN

(pictured left to right: Fearless founder Delali Dzirasa, Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton Dean, Executive Director of TechMGM Charrise Stokes, Mayor of Montgomery Todd Strange, Program Executive Officer of Business and Enterprise Systems Richard Aldridge, and Chairman of the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Willie Durham)

The city of Montgomery, Alabama has a long history of prioritizing military missions (particularly for the Air Force), and the most recent announcement by the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce (MACC) has proven to be no exception. On May 22^nd, during the 11^th annual Business and Enterprise Systems (BES) Vendor Industry Day event, TechMGM (an initiative created by the MACC that brings together government operations to connect and expand Montgomery’s technology-related assets) announced a conglomeration with the Air Force BES Directorate Program Executive Office that will host the latest Air Force software development project.

The newest project, entitled Business and Enterprise Systems Product Innovation (BESPIN), will create a collaboration between local developers and developers from the private sector that will use an “agile development methodology” in order to turn projects into new resolutions that will ultimately support the Department of Defense.

“We’re essentially replicating a structure that has proven successful in the commercial sector and applying it to the Air Force and building upon the foundation set by our peers at Kessel Run. What previously worked just isn’t cutting it anymore – we’ve got to be faster and more efficient,” said Richard Aldridge, Program Executive Officer of Business & Enterprise Systems. “Launching BESPIN has reimagined our view on software acquisition and the way we solve problems. We’re confident that the brightest minds in the creation of business software and mobile solutions will be attracted to serving our country by solving some of the most pressing issues that the Air Force faces today.”

The idea for the BESPIN initiative was provided by the Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Dr. Will Roper, who charged the BES Directorate to stand-up an agile software factory focusing exclusively on the development of BES apps. BESPIN will allow previously exorbitant and deliberate products to be met with various and flexible solutions, while simultaneously creating faster real-time results. The immediate short-term goal of BESPIN will be to attract high-quality IT talent to the Air Force to develop software using agile methods. Overall, the MACC could not be happier with the development of this new initiative.

“The chamber supports any type of partnership that advances the military because it is not only good for our country, but also for our community,” said Willie Durham, Chairman of the MACC. “Initiatives like BESPIN allow our region to attract and retain talent, spark new businesses and create a cycle of economic development that will have lasting effects in Montgomery for years to come.”

In this partnership with the MACC, BES will be provided an off-site space to allow the BESPIN team to create apps for BES, with the first focus being logistics systems used on the flight line, including those at Maxwell Air Force Base and the Alabama National Guard.

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