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Building the Base"Building the Base" - an in-depth series of conversations with top entrepreneurs, innovators, and leaders from tech, financial, industrial, and public sectors. Author: Building the Base
"Building the Base" - an in-depth series of conversations with top entrepreneurs, innovators, and leaders from tech, financial, industrial, and public sectors. Our special guests provide their unique perspectives on a broad selection of topics such as: shaping our future national security industrial base, the impact of disruptive technologies, how new startups can increasingly contribute to national security, and practical tips on leadership and personal development whether in government or the private sector. Building the Base is hosted by Lauren Bedula, is Managing Director and National Security Technology Practice Lead at Beacon Global Strategies, and the Honorable Jim "Hondo" Geurts who retired from performing the duties of the Under Secretary of the Navy and was the former Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development & Acquisition and Acquisition Executive at United States Special Operations Command. Language: en Genres: Business, Entrepreneurship Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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Capacity as Deterrent: The Defense Production Imperative with Ken Bedingfield, L3Harris
Episode 89
Tuesday, 20 January, 2026
In this episode of Building the Base, Hondo Geurts and Lauren Bedula sit down with Ken Bedingfield, Chief Financial Officer and President of Missile Solutions at L3Harris. This episode was recorded on December 6, 2025 at the Reagan National Defense Forum in Simi Valley, CA. Ken discusses his journey across the defense industrial base, from leadership at a traditional prime to serving as the 20th employee and CEO at venture-backed counter-UAS startup Epirus, to his current dual role at L3Harris. The conversation explores the fundamental shift from requirements-driven to capacity-driven defense strategy, and examines how L3Harris operates as the "tweener" between traditional primes and startups by making decisions in days rather than weeks.Five key takeaways from today's episode:Defense has shifted from requirements to capacity: The industry is moving away from chasing the last bit of capability or technology toward building production capacity at scale. Capacity itself has become a deterrent, driven by recognition of current conflicts and the real-world depletion of munitions stockpiles.Commercial contracting models benefit traditional primes too: L3Harris already derives 20% of sales through commercial models and strongly supports acquisition reform including eliminating cost accounting standards, reducing requirements, and expanding commerciality definitions; reforms often assumed to benefit only new entrants.Solid rocket motor production faces unique scaling challenges: Aerojet Rocketdyne's Camden, Arkansas facility spans 2,500 acres with 200 buildings and highly specialized regulations around explosive loads, storage, and safety. Scaling production requires understanding these complexities, suggesting new entrants should consider partnerships rather than building parallel capacity.Successful partnerships require mission alignment over technology hype: L3Harris positions itself as "connective tissue" between technology and mission capability. For example, partnering with Palantir to integrate AI into world-class electro-optic sensors rather than trying to build computer vision capabilities in-house. The key question for partnerships is "are we moving fast enough?"Public companies can innovate with the right focus: L3Harris has self-funded R&D in communications for 20 years without charging the government, and is transitioning other product lines to similar commercial models. While managing quarterly earnings and public market expectations isn't easy, publicly traded companies can find creative ways to invest and move at speed.Claude is AI and can make mistakes. Please double-check responses.
