Research for Military Organization

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,

The Commandant of the Coast Guard requested CNA analytical assistance in identifying the Coast Guard's enduring features and in describing its unique character as a multi-missioned institution serving a diverse customer base. This task is an essential feature of a brader study attempting to develop a notional end state for the year 2020 by comparing service missions with trends affecting them. We believe that the future direction of the Coast Guard must be consistent with the service's enduring characteristics and its history and traditions. This report contains a brief history of the organization, a description of Coast Guard purpose and responsibilities, and a discussion of service identity and characteristics, organizational motivation, and national contributions. The reader should understand that his document represents an outsiders view of the Coast Guard.

In this paper we summarize the results of a study conducted by the Center for Naval Analyses that identifies and analyzes how the Marine Corps might improve its ability to conduct Humanitarian Assistance Operations (HAOs). To achieve this objective, we (1) examined how the military has conducted HAOs in the past; (2) identified alternative ways the military can conduct these operations; and (3) assessed the relative costs of these alternatives in terms of changes in organization, training and education, doctrine and documentation, and equipment and supplies. This study is co-sponsored by the Marine Corps Combat Development Command and I Marine Expeditionary Force. We developed this summary from earlier analyses which present detailed discussions of HAO requirements and alternatives in the areas of planning, training, civil affairs and psychological operations, legal affairs, and logistics and engineering. This summary presents key results from these analyses, and integrates them into a greater whole.

This briefing presents results from a study undertaken by the Center for Naval Analyses (CNA) at the request of Marine Corps Combat Development Command (MCCDC) and I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF). The primary objective of the study is to identify and analyze some alternatives the Marine Corps might consider in order to improve its ability to conduct humanitarian assistance operations (HAOs). To meet this objective, we have been (1) examining ways of conducting HAOs; (2) identifying changes in organization, training and education, doctrine, and equipment and supplies that will help the marine Corps better prepare for HAOs; and (3) assessing the relative costs of these changes. This briefing focuses on identifying and analyzing the training and education requirements for Marines assigned to HAOs and suggests ways the Marine Corps might meet those requirements.