Astonishing, Agile, Success! - Reflections on Maneuver Combat Systems Best Practices

A series of six interviews of senior acquisition leaders. Each leader will reflect upon acquisition best practices. Partnering and collaborating with the Defense Acquisition Workforce and the DAU faculty about acquisition best practices as it coincides with DAU improving acquisition outcomes.

Interview with Colonel Jeffrey W. Jurand, U.S. Army, Program Manager for Maneuver Combat Systems at PEO Ground Combat Systems, who will discuss successes and best practices.

CLPs: 0.5

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COL Jeffery W. Jurand graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1998 and commissioned a Second Lieutenant of Armor. He initially served as both a Tank and Scout Platoon Leader in 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, TX. In November 2001 he deployed as an Assistant Operations Officer with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division to Kuwait as Operation Enduring Freedom began.

Following the Armor Captains Career Course, he then served as a Rear Detachment Commander and Assistant Operations Officer for 1st Battalion, 34th Armor, 1st Infantry Division at Fort Riley, KS. In June 2005, he assumed command of C/1-34 AR. In May 2006, C/1-34 AR tripled in size, converted to a motorized company and COL Jurand commanded the company during its subsequent deployment in support of OIF 06-07. Upon re-deployment, he transitioned into the Army Acquisition Corps.

In 2008, COL Jurand was assigned to the Army Research Laboratory at Adelphi, MD and served as a counter-IED Project Team Lead. There he led project teams conducting limited development and experimentation with both developmental and off-the-shelf technology and led initial fielding efforts in Afghanistan in support of Joint IED Defeat Organization’s (JIEDDO) efforts. In 2010 he was reassigned to Warren, MI where he served as an Assistant Product Manager for Mobility and Power Generation Systems in the Ground Combat Vehicle (GCV) Program. In 2013 he was nominated and selected for an assignment with the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) at Fort Bragg, NC. There he served as both a Product Director for Sensitive Activities and Chief of Requirements. COL Jurand assumed responsibilities as Product Manager, Heavy Tactical Vehicles in June 2016. In June 2020, COL Jurand was reassigned to the Pentagon and served as the Executive Officer to the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology (ASA(ALT)). In November 2020, COL Jurand was reassigned to PEO GCS, PM Maneuver Combat Systems as the Project Manager.

COL Jurand has a B.S. in Engineering Science from Vanderbilt University and an M.Eng in Project Management from University of Maryland, College Park. He attended the U.S. Army War College Fellowship at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburg, PA in 2019-2020 where he studied cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence (AI). 

COL Jurand is married to the former Erin Kay Smith, PhD of Austin, TX. They have 4 children: Grant-12, Riley-11, Austin-9, and Caroline-6.