Executive Externalization of Military Logistics and Support in Iranian Army Ground Force: from Theory to Practice

This study was run in a bid to decide on the nature and possibility of externalization or internalization and also prioritization of externalization of logistic affairs from the commanders and decision-maker's perspectives. Having done a literature review, the researchers, in a bid to suggest an appropriate model, encouraged 38 participants to answer a respective questionnaire. In order to address their concerns, they also attended a semi-structure interview. T-test and Friedman test were run to identify and prioritize their ideas and chi-square test was run to address the interview data. The findings showed that repair and maintenance road-making machineries enjoyed the highest while the staff training services was ranked the lowest among the fifteen items. The first variable was evaluated as the first priority based on the interview. Moreover, the interview data showed that taking the advantages of combination of direct and indirect investments by contractors, recruiting a joint task force managed by the contractor along with exercising intelligence and protective measures and controls by the Army would be the best model for the externalization.