Challenges to Governing C2 Lifecycle Capability

NATO-RTG-HFM-342 (Paper #58)

Dr Alexander Kalloniatis

Human & Decision Sciences Division/Agile C2 STaR Shot

Defence Science & Technology Group

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With: Per Wikberg (FOI, Swed), Paul Gaertner (DSTG, Aus), Marie-Eve Jobidon (DRDC, Can),

Rich Cooke (Dstl, UK), David Bryant (DRDC, Can), Maria Wikstrom (FOI, Swed),

Ralph Dekker (NATOC2COE, Neth), Jonas Herkevall (FOI, Swed), Magdalena Granesen (FOI, Swed)

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• NATO-RTG-HFM-342 Overview
• What are we aiming for?
• Challenges:
• ‘Owner’ of the C2 system
• In-agility of (C2) Capability Lifecycle
• Stovepipes of the (C2) S&T Ecosystem
• Culture in C2
• Insights and Prospects

Overview

• Foundational Driver: The Graveyard of Failed C2 Programs
• Successor to NATO-ET-184
• Wikberg, Many faces of C2, 26^th ICCRTS 2021
• Goal: ‘Code of Best Practice’ for Governing C2 Capability
• Future Strategic Environment (Jobidon & Bryant, 27^th ICCRTS 2022)
• Also at 28^th ICCRTS 2023: Wikberg et al. #25 ‘Coal-face Perspectives on C2 Capability Governance’
• Final Report due 2024

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NATO-RTG-HFM-342 Overview

• C2 Agility

What are we aiming for?

• Measuring C2
• Challenge of using NATO C2 Reference Model
• Sociotechnical Dimensions
• Challenging of grappling with human and technological factors
• Managing C2
• Excessive focus on Platforms in CAPDEV
• Developing C2
• Overlooking ‘Change Management’
• Resistance to Change
• Culture, Tradition, Lack of Buy-In
• Lack of Organisational Learning
• C2 is victim of all Lessons ‘Learned’ processes

Challenges – from NATO-ET-184

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• Conway’s Law

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• C2 of the Change replicates the C2

Challenges – Key Paradigms

Owner of the C2

“Physician Heal Thyself”

Mmm… I think I’ll order a review of them down there

That guy up there is part of the problem

• Top-down committee processes

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• Adversarial -- not collaborative --under resource constraints

Bureaucratic Nature of the CAPDEV Cycle

• Platforms, Wires, Servers, … C4

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• Where’s the Human? The C2.

Stove-Pipes of the (C2) CAPDEV Cycle

• C2 Science is Transdisciplinary

Stove-Pipes of the (C2) S&T Ecosystem

C2

How are they managed?

Achieving Co-Design in HQs

I’m too busy for this!!

Headquarters

• It’s all around us

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• Institution v Organisation
• Changing fast how we do something (Agile) within the slower time of changing who we are

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Culture

• Joint v Single-Service: Promotion criteria

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• Image Theory: What defines a Joint officer?

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• Social Identity Theory
• In/Out Groups

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“These different theories explain how culture is reinforcing of traditional ways of doing C2: the system is unable to transform itself because intrinsic biases, behaviours and practices condition how the change is undertaken. In a sense, the bureaucratic-cultural mindsets of the capability development and operational C2 systems do not really believe in their DNA the kind of behaviour they wish to realise. And so they always reproduce the C2 they know. “

Culture – As Emergent

• Has Australia cracked it?
• See Paper # 59: Case-Study ‘MURA’

Insights

Here lies

Another Failed C2 Project

Proving that

The Problem with Fixing the C2

Is the C2 You’re Trying to Fix

And the C2 of Those Trying to Fix it.