The Edge

Scharnhorst and Professional Mastery

To me, being 'professional' has meant striving for excellence at my everyday job. Until I attended Command and Staff Course at the Australian War College last year, I did not appreciate that being good at my job was not the same as being a military professional. The course broadened my understanding; being a professional requires one to embrace continual learning in all aspects of the profession. I became conscious that through professional mastery, individuals, even those in junior roles, can influence organisational outcomes beyond their job.

Pakistan’s Unconventional War Failure

Since 2009 the Afghan government, with international support, has pursued a policy of opening the door to a political solution to the war in their nation. That policy decision was backed up by a massive push to professionalize the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) and to continue to militarily pressure the taliban and others on the battlefield. The underlying premise was that the Taliban movement (senior and low-level members) would be forced to react to the legitimate Afghan government olive branch in many ways.

Future War – A Trinitarian Framework

In grappling with the future of war and warfare it is useful to have a mental framework to consider the potential impacts of the matters at issue. In considering futures those matters range widely from large scale societal changes through to narrower next generation technological advances that continue the service of legacy fleets.

Product innovation success in the ADF – an exploratory study

It is possible for Australian defence companies and the Australian Defence Organisation to achieve greater success and better mitigate the financial, technical and schedule risks in developing new, technology-based  equipment and services for the ADF.

The research leading to this conclusion was based on case studies of 20 successful and unsuccessful Australian defence projects, and addressed three key questions:

Air Force launches The Runway

The Runway, Air Force’s new professional development platform designed to foster a broad community of learning was launched on 31 Oct 19 by Commander Air Force Training Group, Air Commodore Glen Braz.

Air Force, Australian Defence Organisation and other government agency personnel are invited to engage with the curated content and take the opportunity to participate in a whole-of-government discussion around the key topics affecting the delivery of air and space power for Australia’s future.

The Competition Prism

“Our traditional way that we differentiate between peace and war is insufficient …….we think of being at peace or war…our adversaries don’t think that way.” 

General Joseph F. Dunford, Jr. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff 21 September and 5 October 2016 

Future Workforce 2025 - Scherger Group

Compiled by Wing Commander Jo Brick 1

Defence Entrepreneur’s Forum Australia 2019 -Sep30 and Oct01

Interested in pitching or participating at the Defence Entrepreneur’s Forum Australia 2019 (#DEFAus19)?

Sir James Rowland Seminar at ADFA - 28 August 2019

In collaboration with the Air Power Development Centre, ACSACS is pleased to announce the details of the latest Sir James Rowland Seminar.

• Theme: Australia's enduring approach to Air-mindedness and Aviation Culture
• Keynote speaker: Air Chief Marshal Sir Angus Houston AK, AFC (Ret’d)
• Tickets are free, and the event is fully catered.
• Register at Eventbrite

ADF Concept for Command and Control of the Future Force

FOREWORD

by DL Johnston, AO Vice Admiral, RAN

Vice Chief of the Defence Force

Developing the Coalition – Can We Do More?

The aim of this paper is to provide insights into why preparing and developing a coalition environment is important for the ADF; what are the challenges that a coalition presents; and offer some recommendations on how the ADF might better prepare for the multilateral operations.

Are we ready for machines to learn and make decisions for us?

LTCOL Jasmin Diab uses the example of her recent work in supporting the International Atomic Energy Agency to ask us to consider the future of machine learning and its ability to support military decision making.