Research for military modernization

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The Officer Structure in the 21st Century
May 1, 2001
At the beginning of the new century, the Navy is undergoing a series of major changes in the way it fights. Changes in the force structure have altered the demand on personnel. New technologies are revolutionizing Navy platforms and concepts of operations. Business practices have shifted some work previously done by military personnel to civilians in both the civil service and the private sector. Organizational changes for all the armed forces, first initiated with the passage of Goldwater-Nichols in 1986, have placed increasing control in the hands of the joint arena. This paper explores how and why an efficient military might include an increasing proportion of senior officers over time. The argument rests on four main pillars: force structure; technology; outsourcing; and joint, interagency, and international coordination.
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Development of the Squad: Historical Analysis
October 1, 2000
This research memorandum is a product of the USMC Ground Combat Study, which analyzes the size and organization of small infantry units. Our goal is to use this analysis of historical changes in squad size and organization to provide the Marine Corps with an assessment of the future relevance of these units. This report explores the factors behind the emergence of squads, and how and why they have changed in size and organization with time. We believe that understanding the drivers of these changes will allow us to analyze, with some confidence, the kind of impact the complex future warfighting environments that the Marine Corps may face are bound to have on its current 13-man squad. The methodology used in this report is both historical, in that it looks back into the past; and extrapolative, in that it looks forward briefly into the future as well.
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Ground Combat Study : Summary of Analysis
October 1, 2000
In the USMC Ground Combat Study we are focused on small unit (squad and fire team) size and organization. Our goal is to use an analysis of historical changes in squads together with an analytic tool to provide the Marine Corps with an assessment of the relevance of these units on the future battlefield. Using CNA-initiated funding, we plan to demonstrate the utility of analyses in one of the USMC's core warfighting areas. We also plan for this study to be the first in our program of research into ground combat and, at a more general level, MAGTF operations,
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