Information Age Transformation Series Power to the Edge Command... Control... in the Information Age David S. Alberts Richard E. Hayes with a Foreword by John Stenbit About the CCRP The Command and Control Research Program (CCRP) has the mission of improving DoD’s understanding of the national security implications of the Information Age. Focusing upon improving both the state of the art and the state of the practice of command and control, the CCRP helps DoD take full advantage of the opportunities afforded by emerging technologies. The CCRP pursues a broad program of research and analysis in information superiority, information operations, command and control theory, and associated operational concepts that enable us to leverage shared awareness to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of assigned missions. An important aspect of the CCRP program is its ability to serve as a bridge between the operational, technical, analytical, and educational communities. The CCRP provides leadership for the command and control research community by: • articulating critical research issues; • working to strengthen command and control research infrastructure; • sponsoring a series of workshops and symposia; • serving as a clearing house for command and control related research funding; and • disseminating outreach initiatives that include the CCRP Publication Series. This is a continuation in the series of publications produced by the Center for Advanced Concepts and Technology (ACT), which was created as a “skunk works” with funding provided by the CCRP under the auspices of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (NII). This program has demonstrated the importance of having a research program focused on the national security implications of the Information Age. It develops the theoretical foundations to provide DoD with information superiority and highlights the importance of active outreach and dissemination initiatives designed to acquaint senior military personnel and civilians with these emerging issues. The CCRP Publication Series is a key element of this effort. Check our Web site for the latest CCRP activities and publications. www.dodccrp.org DoD Command and Control Research Program Assistant Secretary of Defense (NII) & Chief Information Officer Dr. Linton Wells, II (Acting) Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (NII) Dr. Linton Wells, II Special Assistant to the ASD(NII) & Director, Research and Strategic Planning Dr. David S. Alberts Opinions, conclusions, and recommendations expressed or implied within are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Defense, or any other U.S. Government agency. Cleared for public release; distribution unlimited. Portions of this publication may be quoted or reprinted without further permission, with credit to the DoD Command and Control Research Program, Washington, D.C. Courtesy copies of reviews would be appreciated. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Alberts, David S. (David Stephen), 1942- Power to the Edge: Command and Control in the Information Age / David S. Alberts, Richard E. Hayes. p. cm. ISBN 1-893723-13-5 1. Command and control systems--United States. 2. Information warfare- -United States. 3. United States--Armed Forces--Reorganization. 4. Military art and science--Effect of technological innovations on--United States. I. Hayes, Richard E., 1942- II. Title. UB212.A43 2003 355.3'3041--dc21 2003007597 1st printing June 2003 2nd printing June 2004 3rd printing April 2005 Information Age Transformation Series Power to the Edge Command... Control... in the Information Age David S. Alberts Richard E. Hayes with a Foreword by John Stenbit Table of Contents List of Figures.............................................vii Acknowledgements ....................................ix Foreword ...................................................xiii Preface ......................................................xix Chapter 1. Introduction ..............................1 Leveraging the Power of Information .........................2 Power to the Edge .......................................................4 Organization of the Book ............................................7 Chapter 2. Command and Control ..........13 Definition of Command and Control .......................14 Domains of Command and Control ........................14 Enduring Principles ...................................................15 Spectrum of C2 Approaches .....................................18 Self-Synchronization .................................................27 Command and Control Approaches in the Information Age ..................................................32 i Chapter 3. Industrial Age C2 ...................37 Industrial Age Command and Control .....................37 Decomposition ..........................................................38 Specialization ............................................................39 Hierarchical Organizations .......................................41 Optimization .............................................................44 Deconfliction .............................................................45 Centralized Planning .................................................46 Decentralized Execution ...........................................48 Industrial Age C2–Simple Adaptive Control Mechanisms .................................................49 Chapter 4. Breakdown of Industrial Age Organizing Principles and Processes .........53 The Industrial Age Legacy.........................................54 Interoperability and Industrial Age Organizations ...56 Agility and the Industrial Age ...................................59 Information and Industrial Age Organizations .........63 A Tale of Two Corporals ...........................................64 Chapter 5. The Information Age ..............71 ii Economics of Information .........................................71 The Power of Information Redefined .......................72 Technology Enablers of Power to the Edge .....................................................74 Post Before Processing ...............................................82 Lessons from the Private Sector ................................83 Efficiency: Hierarchies v. the Robustly Networked Force .......................................................91 Chapter 6. Desired Characteristics of Information Age Forces .........................97 Network Centric Warfare...........................................98 Sensemaking ...........................................................101 Coalition and Interagency Operations ....................103 Appropriate Means .................................................103 Orchestration of Means ..........................................104 Chapter 7. Interoperability .....................107 Need for Interoperability .........................................107 Levels of Interoperability .........................................109 Achieving Interoperability .......................................110 An Edge Approach to Interoperability ....................118 iii Chapter 8. Agility ....................................123 Introduction .............................................................123 Agility: Defined and Placed in an Information Age Context ........................................125 Agile C2 ...................................................................127 Chapter 9. Power and the Edge ..............165 Power .......................................................................166 The Edge .................................................................173 Chapter 10. Power to the Edge ...............179 Edge Organizations .................................................181 Fixed v. Emergent Leadership .................................184 An Edge Infostructure .............................................186 Components of the GIG .........................................187 Edge Applications ...................................................198 Chapter 11. Command…Control… in the Information Age ...........................201 Command in the Information Age .........................203 Control in the Information Age ..............................206 iv Chapter 12. The Power of “Power to the Edge” Organizations .........................213 Hierarchies and Edge Organizations ......................215 Comparison of Hierarchies v. Edge Organizations .................................................218 Chapter 13. Edge-Oriented Mission Capability Packages ................................223 Coevolution of Institutional Processes .....................224 Strategic Planning and Requirements .....................224 Experimentation, Coevolution, and Power to the Edge ...................................................227 Beyond Training and Exercises to Education and Experimentation .............................228 Chapter 14. The Way Ahead ..................233 Bibliography ............................................237 About the Authors....................................257 Catalog of CCRP Publications ..........CAT-1 v List of Figures Figure 1. Nelson’s Innovation at the Battle of Trafalgar ......30 Figure 2. Sample Response Surface .....................................61 Figure 3. Location of the Global Maximum ........................61 Figure 4. Napoleon’s Corporal and the Strategic Corporal .........................................................65 Figure 5. Capabilities of Telephone Information Exchange ........................................................................77