The Revolutionary FAR Overhaul stripped hundreds of pages from federal acquisition rules to enable speed, flexibility, and innovation. But changing regulations is easier than changing behavior. The next phase hinges on whether contracting officers and acquisition teams can move past decades of risk‑avoidance and compliance-first thinking.
Training alone won’t be enough. Incentives, accountability, and a shift toward outcome-based contracting (think statements of objectives, not statements of work) will determine whether this overhaul delivers real impact.
2025 was about efficiency. 2026 is about innovation. The question is whether government and industry are ready to operate differently or default back to old habits.