thedrifter
11-20-03, 06:33 AM
Issue Date: November 24, 2003
Survey shows many officers skeptical of transformation
By Gordon Lubold
Times staff writer
Changing the military is key to winning tomorrow’s wars, but a majority of officers aren’t sure the Pentagon is on the right track to transforming itself, according to a new survey.
And while most Marine and Air Force officers believe their services reward innovation, a minority of Navy and Army officers feel the same way, according to the poll, conducted in 2002 and released this month by two independent researchers.
Likewise, 75 percent of Marine officers polled believe their service culture is open to self-criticism, while fewer than 50 percent of Army, Navy and Air Force officers agree that their services encourage critical discourse.
“It seems to me that most officers have not encountered innovation in their careers, but there are significant service differences,” said Thomas G. Mahnken, acting director of the Strategic Studies Program at Johns Hopkins University in Washington. “The Marines clearly see their service as more accepting of innovation than other services.”
Mahnken and James R. FitzSimonds, a professor at the Naval War College in Newport, R.I., polled a total of more than 2,500 officers from the four services on their views of military transformation and innovation. The officers polled included junior, midgrade and flag officers attending 16 professional military education institutions such as Naval Postgraduate School, the Marine Corps Command and Staff College, or the Army or Air War colleges.
Officers also were asked about their knowledge of U.S. military capabilities and the cultural climate in which they work.
There is a “mixed view of transformation,” Mahnken said, suggesting there is latent support for changing the military among officers. But just how those officers believe the military should transform itself — or if it is even changing — is unclear.
For example, 64 percent of officers polled are unsure whether the services should change their approach to warfare to deal effectively with future enemies, and 67 percent are unsure whether the military is on a path that will lead to radical changes in technology, doctrine and organization.
Another question asked officers if they thought their service was exploring new approaches to warfare. The majority were split between being unsure and agreeing.
The findings stem from a lack of awareness of what the military is doing to transform itself, Mahnken said, as much as it may suggest a lack of buy-in to change.
“They see limited progress in doing the types of things that need to be done to transform the services,” Mahnken said.
Threat awareness
Regarding threats against the United States, the officer corps feels more strongly that there is a possibility of attacks than it did before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. In a similar survey the researchers conducted in 2000, few officers believed enemies would have the ability to hit targets from afar.
For example, only 9 percent of officers asked in 2000 agreed that within 10 years adversaries would be able to use long-range precision-strike weapons such as ballistic and cruise missiles to deny the use of U.S. bases, ports and airfields. But in the 2002 survey, 69 percent of officers agreed.
Contrasts between the surveys didn’t end there. The most recent survey also showed a big change in the attitudes of Army officers, who were “squarely in favor of the status quo” in 2000, Mahnken said. At that time, a majority believed their service would be dominated by armored forces. But now those officers think differently.
“Army officers see the future of the Army … in medium-weight forces,” Mahnken said. “That’s a real shift.”
Air Force officers also believe their future will look different. Most Air Force officers — only 48 percent of whom are pilots —agree that the future is in unmanned aircraft, and expect the Air Force to make the transition to relying more heavily on unmanned planes than manned strike aircraft.
But as the military adapts to the challenges it faces in the post-Sept. 11 world, not all military officers believe their services either are open to self-criticism or reward innovation.
While 75 percent of Marine officers felt the Corps is open to self-criticism, only 39 percent of Navy officers felt the same way about their service. About 48 percent of both Army and Air Force officers agreed. Also, about 58 percent of the Marine officers surveyed said their service rewarded innovation, whereas only 28 percent of Navy officers said the same of their service. About 58 percent of Air Force officers believe their service rewards innovation, but only 34 percent of Army officers say the same.
Other findings:
• Most officers are unsure whether senior leadership is doing its best to keep them informed about plans for future change.
• About 65 percent of officers are unsure whether they see evidence of major changes to military training and education.
• While 80 percent agree that transformation will require major changes to personnel management policies and procedures in all their services, most say they don’t see evidence of major changes to personnel management in their service, or are unsure.
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story.php?f=0-MARINEPAPER-2396000.php
Sempers,
Roger
:marine:
Survey shows many officers skeptical of transformation
By Gordon Lubold
Times staff writer
Changing the military is key to winning tomorrow’s wars, but a majority of officers aren’t sure the Pentagon is on the right track to transforming itself, according to a new survey.
And while most Marine and Air Force officers believe their services reward innovation, a minority of Navy and Army officers feel the same way, according to the poll, conducted in 2002 and released this month by two independent researchers.
Likewise, 75 percent of Marine officers polled believe their service culture is open to self-criticism, while fewer than 50 percent of Army, Navy and Air Force officers agree that their services encourage critical discourse.
“It seems to me that most officers have not encountered innovation in their careers, but there are significant service differences,” said Thomas G. Mahnken, acting director of the Strategic Studies Program at Johns Hopkins University in Washington. “The Marines clearly see their service as more accepting of innovation than other services.”
Mahnken and James R. FitzSimonds, a professor at the Naval War College in Newport, R.I., polled a total of more than 2,500 officers from the four services on their views of military transformation and innovation. The officers polled included junior, midgrade and flag officers attending 16 professional military education institutions such as Naval Postgraduate School, the Marine Corps Command and Staff College, or the Army or Air War colleges.
Officers also were asked about their knowledge of U.S. military capabilities and the cultural climate in which they work.
There is a “mixed view of transformation,” Mahnken said, suggesting there is latent support for changing the military among officers. But just how those officers believe the military should transform itself — or if it is even changing — is unclear.
For example, 64 percent of officers polled are unsure whether the services should change their approach to warfare to deal effectively with future enemies, and 67 percent are unsure whether the military is on a path that will lead to radical changes in technology, doctrine and organization.
Another question asked officers if they thought their service was exploring new approaches to warfare. The majority were split between being unsure and agreeing.
The findings stem from a lack of awareness of what the military is doing to transform itself, Mahnken said, as much as it may suggest a lack of buy-in to change.
“They see limited progress in doing the types of things that need to be done to transform the services,” Mahnken said.
Threat awareness
Regarding threats against the United States, the officer corps feels more strongly that there is a possibility of attacks than it did before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. In a similar survey the researchers conducted in 2000, few officers believed enemies would have the ability to hit targets from afar.
For example, only 9 percent of officers asked in 2000 agreed that within 10 years adversaries would be able to use long-range precision-strike weapons such as ballistic and cruise missiles to deny the use of U.S. bases, ports and airfields. But in the 2002 survey, 69 percent of officers agreed.
Contrasts between the surveys didn’t end there. The most recent survey also showed a big change in the attitudes of Army officers, who were “squarely in favor of the status quo” in 2000, Mahnken said. At that time, a majority believed their service would be dominated by armored forces. But now those officers think differently.
“Army officers see the future of the Army … in medium-weight forces,” Mahnken said. “That’s a real shift.”
Air Force officers also believe their future will look different. Most Air Force officers — only 48 percent of whom are pilots —agree that the future is in unmanned aircraft, and expect the Air Force to make the transition to relying more heavily on unmanned planes than manned strike aircraft.
But as the military adapts to the challenges it faces in the post-Sept. 11 world, not all military officers believe their services either are open to self-criticism or reward innovation.
While 75 percent of Marine officers felt the Corps is open to self-criticism, only 39 percent of Navy officers felt the same way about their service. About 48 percent of both Army and Air Force officers agreed. Also, about 58 percent of the Marine officers surveyed said their service rewarded innovation, whereas only 28 percent of Navy officers said the same of their service. About 58 percent of Air Force officers believe their service rewards innovation, but only 34 percent of Army officers say the same.
Other findings:
• Most officers are unsure whether senior leadership is doing its best to keep them informed about plans for future change.
• About 65 percent of officers are unsure whether they see evidence of major changes to military training and education.
• While 80 percent agree that transformation will require major changes to personnel management policies and procedures in all their services, most say they don’t see evidence of major changes to personnel management in their service, or are unsure.
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story.php?f=0-MARINEPAPER-2396000.php
Sempers,
Roger
:marine: