The changes needed in the U.S. Joint Force can be achieved by adapting new technologies to most of the existing force, stated the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, USA, described how those technologies can achieve vital changes to the audience at Joint Warfighting 2012 in Virginia Beach.

Looking ahead to Joint Force 2020, Gen. Dempsey said that 80 percent of that force already is programmed or in place. The remaining 20 percent is not programmed, and it can be tailored to suit requirements. “We either can change the 20 percent that is not yet programmed, or we can change the way we use the 80 percent,” the general stated.

Foremost among the technologies that both can define the 20 percent and change the 80 percent is cyber. Saying “Our actual cyber capabilities are beginning to resemble science fiction,” Gen. Dempsey predicted that cyber “will be a standalone capability with global reach … it will allow the 80 percent to be used differently.” The military must aggressively pursue both offensive and defensive cyber capabilities throughout the entire force, integrating it from the start.

Other game-changing technologies cited by Gen. Dempsey include intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance along with long-range strike; undersea technologies, in which the United States already is strong; and unmanned technologies, which are gaining in importance.

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff stated that both the U.S. military and the homeland face similar national security threats in the coming years. Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, USA, told the audience at Joint Warfighting 2012 in Virginia Beach that threats to national security will not come just from advanced militaries, so non-military responses must be a part of defense efforts.

“We face a far more competitive security environment in which our overmatch over adversaries has diminished,” Gen. Dempsey declared.

He explained that destructive weapons are moving horizontally across militaries, reaching more forces in many countries. And, many destructive weapons also are moving vertically down to nonstate actors. This trend spreads the threat across the spectrum and increases vulnerabilities.

The general added that the U.S. homeland will not be the sanctuary it has been before. Many of the global capabilities that underpin the U.S. military are operated from the homeland, so attacks on the cyber infrastructure or the power grid could disrupt military operations globally.

Treating people properly and ensuring that they receive the support that they need may be the key to attracting and retaining good personnel in the military, according to a panel of experts at Joint Warfighting 2012. Addressing the topic of how the services can meet future expectations and challenges, the panelists largely agreed on the measures that are necessary to ensure a satisfied and effective force for the coming times of change.

Maj. Christopher Bowers, USA, of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, emphasized that the quality of leadership is a major factor. Telling leaders to “Lead the way you want to be led,” he warned against toxic leaders poisoning the atmosphere for personnel. Stating that many great military personnel are in the private sector today because of toxic leaders, he called for 360-degree assessments to flush out those toxic leaders.

Lt. Cdr. James Presler, USN, AIRLANT, U.S. Fleet Forces Command, said that the military has a lot of smart people looking far ahead for the next conflict. To train forces and build new technologies costs money, but many people want it for free, he allowed, adding “If our leaders say they need it, we should just get it.”

Capt. Brett Swaim, USMC, Staff Judge Advocate, offered that the issue is quality, not quantity. He stated that the Marines can accomplish more today with less men than it used to take. In the U.S. Coast Guard, Lt. Joseph Thomas Jr., USCG, commanding officer, USCGC Block Island, declared that he is optimistic about the quality of people in the Coast Guard, particularly with regard to their degrees of education. However, he is pessimistic about the assets they will use. Some Coast Guard cutters are about to be eligible for social security, he analogized.

An aging U.S. population and a younger population in tropical areas may pose troubles for U.S. national security in the near future, said a former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Gen. James E. Cartwright, USMC (Ret.), the inaugural Harold Brown Chair in defense policy studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told the audience at Joint Warfighting 2012 that the different priorities of both groups could put the United States at risk.

In the United States, an aging population that averages 44 years old has different priorities than it did a generation ago. This group is tending to focus more on health care than on activities such as defense and education. By neglecting those two topics, they may not be paying enough attention to both vital elements.

Conversely, the average age of the people who live in the tropics is less than 20 years old. They live in environments in which economic rewards are imbalanced and their resources are misappropriated. Even though educated, these young people have nothing to lose by resorting to drastic actions, such as the recent Arab spring, the general warned. These two population trends could prove to be a bad combination for U.S. interests.

The technology of replacing lost limbs and senses has advanced dramatically because of urgent needs arising from the wars in Southwest Asia. Former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Gen. James E. Cartwright, USMC (Ret.), the inaugural Harold Brown Chair in defense policy studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, described some of these advances to the audience at Joint Warfighting 2012.

He related how one veteran who lost all four of his limbs volunteered for an experimental program to embed a computer chip in the side of his skull. With that chip in place, he was able to control a mechanical limb remotely—the prosthetic arm was in a corresponding laboratory thousands of miles away. After much practice and refining, the arm was flown out to him and attached to his shoulder. After seven limbless years, that veteran finally was able to reach out and touch his wife.

Further chip advances are restoring sight to people blinded by ocular degeneration, Gen. Cartwright continued. Experts now are writing software for people to be able to see objects—not just blobs, but detailed items, he reported. Scientists also are learning how chips can eliminate the problem of pain from phantom limbs, and progress in this field is expanding into other areas as well.

The changes that have redefined the U.S. military over the past decade of war may have left it ill-equipped to fight whatever type of war it faces next, suggests a former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Gen. James E. Cartwright, USMC (Ret.), the inaugural Harold Brown Chair in defense policy studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told the audience at Joint Warfighting 2012 that a strategic outlook must be applied to the force if it is to be able to withstand budget cuts and deal with new types of conflict.

He described the U.S. military, which has evolved to address operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, as an occupation force. “We are equipped as an occupation force and we are trained as an occupation force. It is very heavy; too heavy to move by air. Is that what we want to be when we grow up?” he offered.

The force needs to be recapitalized, and the military must decide whether to continue on the current path or recapitalize it to suit future requirements. He noted that the upcoming F-35 strike aircraft is not ready to deal with a cyber attack. The general related that systems used to have a switch to turn off all electronic emissions; now platforms need a switch to turn off all apertures, which are vulnerable to cyber attack. He added that he sees a nexus coming between cyber and electronic warfare.

Gen. Cartwright did urge greater use of unmanned craft for more improved platform performance. Noting that most platforms today are limited by their onboard human element, he pointed out that unmanned systems are limited only by computational power. “Do you want a smaller force with weapons systems that only have room for marginal improvement?” he asked.

Finding balance, encouraging critical thinking and advancing cyber education are part of the panel recommendations from a group of service representatives addressing training and education in a constrained budget environment. The panelists, who spoke at Joint Warfighting 2012 in Virginia Beach, Virginia, made their points while acknowledging the looming budget challenge, as it was described by MGen. Thomas K. Andersen, USAF, commander, Curtis E. LeMay Center for Doctrine Development and Education.

Timing is everything in the military. All services are faced with the beginning of a strategic point as the wars wind down and budget restraints are faced, stated MGen Robert H. Scales, USA. (Ret.), former commandant U.S. Army College, who served as the panel moderator.

RAdm. John N. Christenson, USN, president, U.S. Naval War College, related that not only does there need to be balance between action and education, but the same is true for technology and education. Careful balance between the classroom and distance learning is part of this, related MGen. John M. Croley, USMCR, deputy commander, U.S. Marine Forces Command “The raw ingredient in the pipeline has never been better, but you need to educate and offer choices for them,” he said. While acknowledging that distance learning has a role, he added,”You need mentors who you see in the classroom.”

Education, history, planning and cooperation are all part of thinking about the future in detail, which Adm. Christenson identified as essential. MGen. Thomas K. Andersen, USAF, commander, Curtis E. LeMay Center for Doctrine Development and Education said it goes farther than just critical thinking. “These thinkers must be unleashed by leadership to become disruptive thinkers.”

Cyber was identified by Gen. Seals as one of the areas where resources are needed, and the panelists agreed. “Advancing cyber thought is essential,” stated Gen. Andersen, and that process is “as much in its infancy as air power was in the late 1920s.”

The homeland is now part of the battlespace as the pace of change is increasing, according to a member of the Joint Staff. Lt. Gen. George J. Flynn, USMC, director, J-7, the Joint Staff, told the audience at Joint Warfighting 2012 in Virginia Beach that adversaries are taking advantage of change, and that trend is likely to increase in the near future.

“If you like the complexity and uncertainty of today, you’re really going to like tomorrow,” Gen. Flynn said.

He noted that the terrorists behind the Mumbai attacks exploited inexpensive and commonly available assets to plan and execute their onslaughts. They conducted their mission planning using Google Earth, and they used conventional cell networks to carry out their command and control. When a tourist snapped and posted on the Web a cell phone photo of Indian Army commandos dropping on the roof of the hotel, the terrorists used it to lay a trap to ambush the would-be rescuers. This was accomplished without any investment in expensive technologies or systems, the general observed.

This democratization of technology is closing the gap between the West and its enemies, he continued. The battlespace of the past was linear with clear definitions. The future battlespace is multidimensional with several domains.

The Atlantic alliance needs to energize the relationship between the United States and its European partners so that it can deal with the uncertainty that will define the future. Vice Adm. C.A. Johnstone-Burt, OBE MA, RN, chief of staff, NATO Allied Command Transformation, said that the concept of Europe picking up more of the burden in NATO was a healthy approach that will broaden NATO’s perspective, not narrow it.

Speaking in the opening keynote discussion at Joint Warfighting 2012 in Virginia Beach, Virginia, the admiral said that the United States needs to be “an explicit leader in NATO, not an implicit one.” And, Europe must take its place with greater activity in NATO.

“We need the political equivalent of a good man-hug, not a limp handshake,” he declared.

Adm. Johnstone-Burt called for maritime force capabilities to catch up with the advances seen by land forces, which have improved greatly over the past decade. While there is a push for niche capabilities, the admiral noted that achieving these capabilities will require full capabilities.

Noting that technological investment has advanced militaries, the admiral cited the need for greater intellectual investment. This equation should be revisited at both sides, he said, adding, “We need to think, train and fight differently.”

Bring your own device policies and information technologies efficiencies were big topics during the final day of the 2012 Defense Information Systems Agency Mission Partner Conference. During Thursday’s panel session, Cora Carmody, chief information officer (CIO), Jacobs Engineering, discussed them both and the money the company has saved through implementation. Jacobs embraced a bring your own device attitude that allows employees to use personal platforms, including tablets, with the understanding that they are responsible for certain costs and for keeping the devices safe. “We reserve the right to wipe your device if you lose it,” Carmody explained. The company updated network security and adapted to accommodate newer Android operating systems and the iOS. It already worked for BlackBerrys. Since instating the policy, Jacobs has saved $10 million a year.

Another cost-saving initiative involves printers. Personal printers are now the exception in the company, which has instituted multifunction devices shared by numerous employees. Before implementing the plan, personnel worked out the most efficient placement. The new devices require people to physically arrive at machines and identify themselves before a job sent to the printer actually comes out on paper. This move increases security while cutting back on waste. “We’ve reduced printing significantly,” Carmody said. In terms of efficiencies she stated that though printing may seem mundane, it is “the low-hanging fruit. It adds up.”

Military members on the panel shared examples of data center consolidations and enterprise emails as ways the Defense Department is increasing efficiency. Michael Krieger, the Army’s deputy CIO/G-6 said that moving to enterprise has significantly improved the soldiers’ network. The Army now owns more than 90 percent of its desktops and owns its network. He also said he wants to enter enterprise licensing agreements with major Army vendors but first he has to know what items the Army owns and second who to charge to obtain the money to pay the companies. Those are ongoing challenges.

Jeff Barr, senior web services evangelist, Amazon Web Services, explained how Amazon uses cloud computing to drive efficiencies. Though the company grows at a rapid rate, its margins are tight. Cloud reduces the investment in hardware and allows for faster changes and greater flexibility. “Efficiency is paramount to us,” Barr stated. Security is built in at the start. “We knew unless we engineered security from the very beginning there was no business there,” Barr explained.  

Gen. Keith Alexander, USA, commander, U.S. Cyber Command, also discussed bring your own device policies in his speech Thursday, focusing on how to secure mobile technology. The general emphasized mobility as an area with tremendous opportunities that has impact on commercial infrastructure, information technology efficiencies, accessing cloud and reducing manpower needs. Keeping information safe is critical in this emerging field. “I think what industry is doing right now to secure mobile devices is huge,” Gen. Alexander stated.

Maj. Gen. Mark Bowman, USA, the director of command, control, communications and computers on the Joint Staff, as well as its CIO, did not talk about personal devices on military networks, but he did address connecting people. The Joint Information Environment is the direction of the future, he said, with interoperability built in from day one. The success of the Afghan Mission Network demonstrated the importance of having a technology to enable communication among coalition partners. Though the services are still in heavy debates about how to move forward, Gen. Bowman says there is no doubt emphasis must be placed on protecting troops on the battlefield. Interoperability is a key piece of that. To help ensure success, the U.S. military must pick a course and not make sudden changes. Because it has a larger information technology budget than other coalition nations, these partners might take years to catch up to any alterations made along the way.

Gen. Bowman also said that the military wants to go to everything over Internet protocol or at least as close to the construct as possible.