10.5.05
Command garners prestigious award for CIE, innovative knowledge management
U.S. Joint Forces Command (USJFCOM) recently garnered a prestigious award from the E-Gov Institute recognizing "innovative knowledge management (KM) best practices in public sector organizations."
USJFCOM won the innovative use of technology in a KM solution category, which goes to a project that utilized contemporary or leading edge commercial technology to implement a creative solution to a real business problem.
In this case, USJFCOM accepted the award for its recent efforts with the Collaborative Information Environment (CIE) on April 21 during the E-Gov Institute's KM conference and exhibition here.
KM, simply defined, is a concept of gathering, organizing, sharing and analyzing an enterprise's resources, documents and information.
"The CIE fit well into any of the award categories which also included, KM initiative delivering high value to a broad user community/supporting agency mission and initiative or organization successfully using innovative KM practices," said Army Maj. Ed McLarney, Joint Futures Lab Prototype Pathway lead engineer who has worked with a large team of individuals to implement the CIE.
More than 50 different organizations turned in nominations for awards in three categories and winners in the two other categories included the Defense Acquisition University and the Illinois Department of Central Management Services.
"The award is an independent verification that our work is making a difference," said McLarney. "We're getting our capabilities outside of the laboratory and into the hands of the warfighter and this is a proud accomplishment. You can actually see the benefits of the CIE through all the things it's done."
"It wasn't just the Joint Futures Lab or the Joint Experimentation Directorate (J9) that worked on this; it was a USJFCOM team accomplishment," he added. "There was support from the Standing Joint Force Headquarters-Core Element (SJFHQ-CE), the Command, Control, Communications and Computer Systems Directorate, the Joint Training Directorate (J7), and many others."
The CIE, which users access through a secure Web-based network, allows warfighters to share information and communicate although they are separated geographically.
It also provides up-to-date situational awareness in real time and assists joint task force commanders and their staffs in performing effects based operations, giving them the ability to make decisions quickly as well as helping them assess the capabilities of an adversary, giving them the advantage over enemy forces.
Elements of the tool include:
• A secure reliable network that promotes ease of information exchange, unconstrained by geographical, operational or organizational boundaries
• Visual presentations of information and knowledge, tailored to the specific needs of users
• Automated tools to acquire, store, fuse and disseminate information and knowledge routinely and on demand
• Accessible information and knowledge sources and persistent, virtual "communities of practice" located worldwide
• Business rules and organizational structures that capitalize on the power of collaboration
According to command officials, the CIE was nominated for the KM award based on several factors to include successful implementation and utilization of the tool, and the degrees to which the tool integrated commercial technology.
It was also evaluated on the degrees to which the capability solved a significant business problem, and the degrees to which implementation of the tool showed innovation as well as other aspects such as benefits that have resulted from warfighters using the capability.
Ways in which the capability has shown benefit to warfighters include:
• Empowering the joint force staffs' ability to plan, execute and assess military operations in a functional manner across geographically-distributed echelons, coalition partners, outside agencies-synchronous collaboration
• Giving joint force staffs access to volumes of relevant data and information through an enterprise portal to support action planning, execution and assessment-allowing warfighters to make better decisions faster
• Enabling effective KM giving an operational commander the advantage over an adversary
Originally, the CIE began as a concept that would enable the SJFHQ but was eventually explored for other venues. After becoming a matured capability, it found its way to the regional combatant commands (RCCs) by late 2003.
"We've fielded the CIE to four of the RCCs, to coalition force headquarters, to headquarters in Korea and to the headquarters for Multinational Forces Iraq," said McLarney.
CIE elements are also in use in Afghanistan and were used to support the 2004 Olympics in Greece.
USJFCOM has been working recently to integrate CIE concepts into joint doctrine. The SJFHQ-CE, along with J7 and J9, continue to look at theater commands with regards to tactics, techniques and procedures (TTP) as they apply to the CIE, and to adapt those TTPs into doctrine.
McLarney summed up the importance of the capability and why it should be recognized for its utility.
"It really shows a cultural change in the way the military does business," said McLarney. "It helps staffs work better together and helps them make better decisions. Just imagine the power of the CIE and how it allows hundreds or even thousands of military staff members to communicate from various distributed locations without having to be physically at the same location and their ability to get the commander's intent rapidly to every warfighter." ¶ 08:35
USJFCOM won the innovative use of technology in a KM solution category, which goes to a project that utilized contemporary or leading edge commercial technology to implement a creative solution to a real business problem.
In this case, USJFCOM accepted the award for its recent efforts with the Collaborative Information Environment (CIE) on April 21 during the E-Gov Institute's KM conference and exhibition here.
KM, simply defined, is a concept of gathering, organizing, sharing and analyzing an enterprise's resources, documents and information.
"The CIE fit well into any of the award categories which also included, KM initiative delivering high value to a broad user community/supporting agency mission and initiative or organization successfully using innovative KM practices," said Army Maj. Ed McLarney, Joint Futures Lab Prototype Pathway lead engineer who has worked with a large team of individuals to implement the CIE.
More than 50 different organizations turned in nominations for awards in three categories and winners in the two other categories included the Defense Acquisition University and the Illinois Department of Central Management Services.
"The award is an independent verification that our work is making a difference," said McLarney. "We're getting our capabilities outside of the laboratory and into the hands of the warfighter and this is a proud accomplishment. You can actually see the benefits of the CIE through all the things it's done."
"It wasn't just the Joint Futures Lab or the Joint Experimentation Directorate (J9) that worked on this; it was a USJFCOM team accomplishment," he added. "There was support from the Standing Joint Force Headquarters-Core Element (SJFHQ-CE), the Command, Control, Communications and Computer Systems Directorate, the Joint Training Directorate (J7), and many others."
The CIE, which users access through a secure Web-based network, allows warfighters to share information and communicate although they are separated geographically.
It also provides up-to-date situational awareness in real time and assists joint task force commanders and their staffs in performing effects based operations, giving them the ability to make decisions quickly as well as helping them assess the capabilities of an adversary, giving them the advantage over enemy forces.
Elements of the tool include:
• A secure reliable network that promotes ease of information exchange, unconstrained by geographical, operational or organizational boundaries
• Visual presentations of information and knowledge, tailored to the specific needs of users
• Automated tools to acquire, store, fuse and disseminate information and knowledge routinely and on demand
• Accessible information and knowledge sources and persistent, virtual "communities of practice" located worldwide
• Business rules and organizational structures that capitalize on the power of collaboration
According to command officials, the CIE was nominated for the KM award based on several factors to include successful implementation and utilization of the tool, and the degrees to which the tool integrated commercial technology.
It was also evaluated on the degrees to which the capability solved a significant business problem, and the degrees to which implementation of the tool showed innovation as well as other aspects such as benefits that have resulted from warfighters using the capability.
Ways in which the capability has shown benefit to warfighters include:
• Empowering the joint force staffs' ability to plan, execute and assess military operations in a functional manner across geographically-distributed echelons, coalition partners, outside agencies-synchronous collaboration
• Giving joint force staffs access to volumes of relevant data and information through an enterprise portal to support action planning, execution and assessment-allowing warfighters to make better decisions faster
• Enabling effective KM giving an operational commander the advantage over an adversary
Originally, the CIE began as a concept that would enable the SJFHQ but was eventually explored for other venues. After becoming a matured capability, it found its way to the regional combatant commands (RCCs) by late 2003.
"We've fielded the CIE to four of the RCCs, to coalition force headquarters, to headquarters in Korea and to the headquarters for Multinational Forces Iraq," said McLarney.
CIE elements are also in use in Afghanistan and were used to support the 2004 Olympics in Greece.
USJFCOM has been working recently to integrate CIE concepts into joint doctrine. The SJFHQ-CE, along with J7 and J9, continue to look at theater commands with regards to tactics, techniques and procedures (TTP) as they apply to the CIE, and to adapt those TTPs into doctrine.
McLarney summed up the importance of the capability and why it should be recognized for its utility.
"It really shows a cultural change in the way the military does business," said McLarney. "It helps staffs work better together and helps them make better decisions. Just imagine the power of the CIE and how it allows hundreds or even thousands of military staff members to communicate from various distributed locations without having to be physically at the same location and their ability to get the commander's intent rapidly to every warfighter." ¶ 08:35
