Transforming the Command and Control Structure of US Special Operations Command to Prosecute the Global War on Terrorism

Abstract

Moving into the 21st Century all the services are going through a transformation to meet the new threats that our country is facing. United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) is no exception. Transformation is a must for USSOCOM to meet the Secretary of Defense's mandate to prosecute the Global War on Terrorism as the supported commander. To property command and control the global campaign against terrorism a major shift in force structure is required for USSOCOM. The main shift needs to be the establishment of a sub-unified command with the sole focus to prosecute the terrorism operations. This organization will be the building block to develop a scalable and deployable command and control team to allow for a dynamic supported command relationship between USSOCOM and the other combatant commanders. To enhance unity of effort USSOCOM will need to leverage existing initiatives such as the deployable subject matter expert concept of the standing joint force headquarters. Utilizing the regional expertise and forward presence the Theater Special Operations Commands (TSOC) will be a force multiplier in fighting a global campaign against terror. The TSOC will be the conduit between USSOCOM and the geographic combatant command enabling the flexibility to achieve the proper command relationship. This building block approach will streamline the C2 process from USSOCOM down through the tactical special operations component. Through an organizational transformation from the top down USSOCOM will develop a network centric command structure to prosecute the global war on terrorism.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 03, 2004
Accession Number
ADA423693

Entities

People

  • Tracey S. Skelton

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • C4I
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Combatant Commanders
  • Command And Control
  • Command And Control Systems
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Interagency Coordination
  • Military Organizations
  • National Security
  • Organizational Structure
  • Terrorism
  • Unconventional Warfare
  • Unified Combatant Commands
  • United States
  • United States European Command
  • United States Pacific Command
  • United States Special Operations Command
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Joint Military Operations and Doctrine.

Technology Areas

  • Fully Networked C3
  • Fully Networked C3 - Command and Control