Broadening Army Leaders for the Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous Environment

Abstract

After 10 years of continuous conflict, the U.S. Army has withdrawn its forces from Iraq and is reducing force structure in Afghanistan. However, it will still face a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) environment that will require commitments from joint, interagency, intergovernmental, and multinational (JIIM) partners. As the Army's operational tempo decreases, it has a unique opportunity to do the following: (1) develop and implement an officer broadening program through the establishment of a balanced career between time spent with soldiers and JIIM partners, (2) change its cloistered culture from Army-centric to one with a multicultural focus, and (3) update its industrial-era officer assignment process to capture the unique capabilities and experiences of individual officers and fill the needs of commanders facing complex challenges. Overcoming these hurdles will result in an adaptive and agile Officers Corps that is capable of effectively integrating JIIM partners and is prepared to fight and win in a VUCA environment.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 01, 2012
Accession Number
ADA561511

Entities

People

  • Brian C. Scott

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Cyber
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Business Administration
  • Climate Change
  • Department Of Defense
  • Doctrine
  • Economic Systems
  • Education
  • Environment
  • Force Structure
  • Governments
  • Military Organizations
  • Mobile Phones
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Students
  • United States Military Academy
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Military Leadership and Professional Education.
  • Military and Counterinsurgency Studies.
  • Systems Analysis and Design