The Edge

The ADF needs non-linearity in contemporary planning

Why the ADF needs to incorporate non-linearity into contemporary planning to seize a competitive advantage.
This paper will argue that the Australian Defence Force (ADF) must place greater emphasis on nonlinear thinking and methodologies to enable a more holistic understanding of the contemporary operational environment and develop the intellectual edge required to outsmart, out-innovate, and outmanoeuvre its adversary.

Realising a data-centric all-domain kill-web through network-driven system design

This paper argues that the ADF requires network-driven system design to maximise the effects of platforms and capabilities across all domains. System design through platform or Service is a relic of the past.

An evaluation of the Russian arrangement of military operations during the first phase of the Russo-Ukrainian War

This essay's thesis is that Russia failed to achieve its primary objective due to inadequate operational risk management. This risk, combined with failures in combined arms warfare and logistical problems, led to Russian forces failing to maintain sufficient operational reach and reaching their culminating point before achieving their operational objective.

Are linear planning models even more critical as warfare evolves greater complexity?

This essay argues that linear planning processes are the most effective method of justifying capability development to the Australian Government to then apply those capabilities as military violence in the complex adaptive system of war.

The Joint Military Appreciation Process: The Good, The Bad and Some Alternatives.

This article evaluates the principal strengths and weaknesses of the ADF’s Joint Military Appreciation Process when used in the planning and execution of operations against complex adaptive systems. It proposes that the ADF could either scrap the JMAP process and move to an existing and more suitable framework for complex adaptive systems, or continue to use the JMAP in conjunction with these more adaptive reiterative systems.