Sharpening the Tip of the Spear: Evaluating technology integration in Special Operations Forces
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- US Special Operations Forces (SOF) carry a renowned reputation for excellence as the most sophisticated warfighters on the planet. The common narrative surrounding SOF contends that SOF employ tactical flexibility, highly specialized training, and advanced technological systems to achieve remarkable battlefield successes; this wisdom is well-earned. But high operational tempo and extended deployments during the Global War on Terror (GWOT) may have unintended consequences for SOF technology acquisitions. In interviews with current and former SOF operators, many expressed frustrations with select technologies, which sharply contrasts SOF’s reputation for agile and effective acquisitions. The thesis draws on extensive interviews with operators, USSOCOM officials, and national security experts, as well as data on USSOCOM acquisitions and a case study examination of the RQ-20 Puma drone system. Taken together, the evidence suggests that SOF’s sustained high operational tempos has changed USSOCOM acquisition, slowly moving SOF acquisitions closer to the behaviors of the Services. This surfaces in three early warning indicators. First, USSOCOM Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics (AT&L) has grown, evidencing a greater jurisdiction of the Program of Record system. Second, SOF across USSOCOM have pursued alternative acquisition methods, betraying a growing disconnect between operator needs and AT&L acquisitions. Third, USSOCOM’s sustained acquisition of the RQ-20 indicates an inability to keep pace with commercial alternatives in select technological domains, to the detriment of operators. This thesis concludes with a discussion of considerations for the optimal composition of acquisitions teams, to mitigate the root causes driving SOF acquisitions behavior towards that of the Services.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Date created | June 6, 2018 |
Creators/Contributors
| Author | Lisbonne, Sam |
|---|---|
| Degree granting institution | Stanford University, Center for International Security and Cooperation |
| Advisor | Zegart, Amy |
Subjects
| Subject | Center for International Security and Cooperation |
|---|---|
| Subject | special operations forces |
| Subject | SOF |
| Subject | USSOCOM |
| Subject | acquisitions |
| Subject | technology |
| Genre | Thesis |
Bibliographic information
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- User agrees that, where applicable, content will not be used to identify or to otherwise infringe the privacy or confidentiality rights of individuals. Content distributed via the Stanford Digital Repository may be subject to additional license and use restrictions applied by the depositor.
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
Preferred citation
- Preferred Citation
- Lisbonne, Sam. (2018). Sharpening the Tip of the Spear: Evaluating technology integration in Special Operations Forces. Stanford Digital Repository. Available at: https://purl.stanford.edu/qk949kk4731
Collection
Stanford University, Center for International Security and Cooperation, Interschool Honors Program in International Security Studies, Theses
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- Contact
- slisbonn@stanford.edu
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