Research for CONOPS

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'Mission Creep': An Examination of an Overused and Misunderstood Term
July 1, 1998
'Mission Creep' is a code-word phrase that influences the US government s approach to military operations even though no common definition or understanding exists as to what 'mission creep' means. This research memorandum attempts to shed some light on the term and improve the level of debate surrounding mil tary operations and tasks within these operations. Using NATO operations in Bosnia-Herzegovina as a basis, it examines nine conceptions of 'mission creep', providing examples of the term used in each context and implications of eac h definition. The paper also explores the anxieties and causes of 'mission creep' and provides a framework for understanding and describing the dimensions of mission change.
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Using Cost Information in Cost and Operational Effectiveness Analyses: Some Lessons Learned
July 1, 1994
This paper identifies and discusses certain issues that appear to be common to all Cost and Operational Effectiveness Analyses (COEAs). It draws from CNA's collective experience in conducting COEA-like studies as well as from longer standing principles of defense systems analysis. Each issue relates in some way to the role of cost information in the analysis. Yet at the same time, each is considerably broader than what is typically thought of as cost estimating or cost analysis. We begin with the role of COEAs in the acquisition process and a general discussion of the objectives of COEA studies and how they are put together. We then focus on the following issues: system versus decision alternatives; integrating cost and effectiveness results; wartime costs; discounting; risk and uncertainty analysis; and affordability.
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Military Relations with Humanitarian Relief Organizations: Observations from Restore Hope
October 1, 1993
Operation RESTORE HOPE, the December 1992 U.S. military intervention in Somalia, was a significant military operation that coincided with a massive relief effort. One aspect of the operation that was fairly new to many Marines there, and to our military as a whole, was the degree of interaction with workers from Humanitarian Relief Organizations (HROs). Although both the military and the HROs accomplished their missions in Somalia, relations between the two groups were sometimes strained. In future operations--in which the threat might be greater and closer cooperation necessary--military-HRO relations may need to be better. As part of the CNA RESTORE HOPE reconstruction project, this paper examines military-HRO relations in that operation. The paper draws on the RESTORE HOPE experience so that future commanders can better understand the complexities of military-HRO relations. In the paper, we review various aspects of the relationship, identify the causes of the problems between the groups, and suggest options that commanders may consider for improving relations in future operations. See also CRMs 93-96, 93-114, 93-120, 93-126, 93-148, and 93-152.
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Desert Storm Reconstruction Report: Summary, Volume I
December 1, 1991
This volume of the Desert Storm Reconstruction Report summarizes the reconstruction of the operation of U.S. Navy forces during Operation Desert Storm. Because those forces were so heavily involved in the broader aspects of the war, as well as the preliminary operations during Desert Shield, some aspects of that broader involvement are also treated here. In particular, the Navy's contributions to building the Coalition through its work with the maritime interception force are discussed at length, as are the planning and conduct of Marine Corps amphibious operations. By means of a historical and analytical review, this paper seeks to identify the broader themes that should influence the critical decisions the Navy must take in the coming years of rethinking and retrenching U.S. defense policy and procurements. The paper does not, however, make any attempt to summarize Marine Corps operations ashore. See also 27 910178 thru 27 910190.
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Marine Corps Deployment Concepts: A Paper for the 1986 Sea Power Forum
November 1, 1986
Describes the various deployment options developed by the Marine Corps over the past decade. The report begins with a brief discussion of the history, mission, and organization of the Marine Corps. Then, after describing the methods of deployment, it examines the effect the deployment techniques have had on the way the Marine Corps employs its forces in peacetime.
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