Valerdi Named Udall Center Fellow

SIE professor Ricardo Valerdi has been named a 2021-22 fellow at the Udall Center, an interdisciplinary research unit that facilitates evidence-based options for solutions to major policy issues. The Udall Center Fellows Program offers specialized tracks to propel public policy research forward. Valerdi is joined by sociology professor Jennifer Earl, geography assistant professor Mark Kear and geography associate professor Orhon Myadar.

Valerdi is an engineer who specializes in the economics of software. His research is on systems engineering, cost estimation, and sports analytics. He is particularly interested in how private companies and government agencies develop and buy software, and more specifically, in exploring the economics of software in the context of military products.

As a Udall Center Fellow, Valerdi intends to complete the manuscript of his book on Department of Defense acquisition policies (tentatively titled “Good Decisions, Bad Outcomes”), as well as write a research proposal to further explore the consequences of Department of Defense  acquisition policies on the success of military projects with particular focus on the software involved in Next Generation Unmanned Systems, and in the acquisition of nuclear weapons.