DARPA brings in expert, entrepreneurial Program Managers; empowers them; protects them from red tape; and quickly makes decisions about starting, continuing or stopping research projects.

To maintain an entrepreneurial atmosphere and the flow of new ideas, DARPA hires Program Managers for only four to six years because the best way to foster new ideas is to bring in new people with fresh outlooks. New people also ensure that DARPA has very few institutional interests beyond innovation, because new Program Managers are willing to redirect the work of their predecessors – and even undo it, if necessary.

Since Program Managers are not at DARPA for a career, they are willing to pursue high-risk technical ideas even if there is a reasonable chance the idea will fail. Another element of DARPA’s strategy is to cultivate entrepreneurial performers in universities and industries by funding ideas that represent revolutionary, vice evolutionary, technical achievements.

DARPA also works with the military Services to develop new and truly joint capabilities that no military Service could or would support by itself.

It is a sum of these parts that makes us different than any other organization you may ever be a part of and it is DARPA’s Culture of Accomplishments that makes us successful

“We have to replace 25-30 top-notch thinkers every year because they are term employees.”
Dr. Tony Tether

MULTISPECTRAL ADAPTIVE NETWORKED TACTICAL IMAGING SYSTEM (MANTIS)