Research Catalog

Title

Leveraging the past to prepare for the future of Air Force intelligence analysis / Brien Alkire, Abbie Tingstad, Dale Benedetti, Amado Cordova, Irina Danescu, William Fry, D. Scott George, Lawrence M. Hanser, Lance Menthe, Erik Nemeth, David Ochmanek, Julia Pollak, Jessie Riposo, Timothy Smith, Alexander Stephenson.

Author

Alkire, Brien,

Publication

• Santa Monica, Calif. : Rand Corporation, [2016]
• ©2016

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Additional Authors

• Benedetti, Dale,
• Cordova, Amado,
• Danescu, Irina,
• Fry, William (Intelligence officer),
• George, D. Scott,
• Hanser, Lawrence M.,
• Menthe, Lance,
• Nemeth, Erik,
• Ochmanek, David A.
• Pollak, Julia,
• Project Air Force (U.S.), sponsoring body.
• Rand Corporation, issuing body.
• Riposo, Jessie,
• Smith, Timothy,
• Stephenson, Alexander,
• Tingstad, Abbie, 1982-

Description

xxii, 128 pages : illustrations, charts; 28 cm.

Summary

"This report describes steps the U.S. Air Force can take to help ensure that it has the capability needed to provide intelligence analysis support to a broad range of service and combatant commander needs, including support to ongoing irregular warfare operations, and to conventional warfare with a near-peer competitor. It describes lessons from past operations that have direct implications for Air Force intelligence analysis or that Air Force intelligence analysis could help to address. It also describes future challenges for Air Force intelligence analysis. It makes recommendations related to doctrine, training and career field development, analysis tools, and processes that can help to address the lessons from the past and prepare Air Force intelligence analysts for the challenges of the future"--Publisher's description.

Subject

• Asymmetric warfare > United States > 21st century
• Intelligence service > Methodology > 21st century
• Military intelligence > Methodology > 21st century
• Military planning > United States > 21st century
• United States. Air Force > Operational readiness

Note

• "RR-1330-AF"--Cover page 4.
• "RAND Project Air Force"
• "Prepared for the United States Air Force"

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (pages 109-128).

Processing Action (note)

• committed to retain

Contents

• Preface -- Figures -- Tables -- Summary -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- 1. Introduction: Background -- Research Objective and Questions -- What Is Intelligence Analysis? -- Constraints and Limitations of the Research -- Methodology -- Outline -- Additional Appendixes -- 2. Lessons from Past Operations: Definition of a Lesson -- Overview of Methodology for Identifying Lessons: How We Identified Relevant Lesson Inputs -- How We Aggregated Relevant Inputs into Lessons -- Nine Lessons from Past Operations: Lessons on Building Analytic Capabilities -- Lessons About Partnerships -- Lessons About Development and Employment of Skills Ensuring That Lessons Are "Learned" -- 3. The Demands of Future Operations and Implications for U.S. Air Force Intelligence Analysis: The Role of Scenarios -- Projecting Power in the 21st Century -- Research Tasks for Scenario Evaluation --
• Focus Areas for U.S. Air Force Intelligence Analysis in Future Conventional Warfights: First-Tier Analytical Problems for the U.S. Air Force -- Second-Tier Analytical Problems for the U.S. Air Force -- A Demanding Operating Environment -- Two Key Future Challenges for U.S. Air Force Intelligence Analysis: 1. The Pace of Future Conflicts Might Stress Needs for Foundational Intelligence and Challenge Readiness to Conduct Analysis During Phase 2/3 Operations -- 2. Analysts Might Need More Expertise with Intelligence from and for the Space and Cyberspace Domains Because Operations in Those Domains Might Be More Prominent -- Implications for Shaping U.S. Air Force Intelligence -- 4. Analysis Tools: A Third Key Future Challenge for U.S. Air Force Intelligence Analysis: 3. The Volume of Data and Limitations on Collection That Anti-Access and Area-Denial Developments Impose Will Challenge Analysts -- Research Tasks for Tool Evaluation --
• Implications of Lessons from Past Operations for Analysis Tools -- Basis for the Third Future Challenge -- Framework: Categories of Tools -- Spectrum of Synthesis -- Workflow/Synthesis Matrix -- Priorities for Analysis Tools: Single-INT Analysis and Exploitation Tools -- Multisource and Multi-INT Analysis Tools -- All-Source Analysis Tools -- Way Ahead: A New Workflow -- Transforming the Distributed Common Ground/Surface System Analysis and Reporting Team -- Embracing the Intelligence Community Information Technology Enterprise -- Shaping the Human Analytic Effort -- 5. Training and Career-Field Development: Research Tasks for Evaluation of Training and Career-Field Development -- Training and Career-Field Development in U.S. Air Force Intelligence Specialties: The Intelligence Officer Career Field -- The Enlisted Operations Intelligence Career Field -- The Civilian Analysts -- Conclusions from Our Evaluation:
• Adequate Procedures Are in Place to Define Curriculum and Align Training and Personnel Requirements -- Some Analysts Might Not Have Enough Opportunities to Develop Advanced Critical-Thinking and Analysis Skills Applied to Basic U.S. Air Force Functions -- The U.S. Air Force Has Taken Initial Steps to Improve Basic Knowledge of Space and Cyber Domains, but Additional Work Is Required -- Training- and Career Field-Related Recommendations: Create a Training and Career Force Development Program for Analysts Spanning Multiple Air Force Specialties -- Develop Requirements for New Mobile Training Team Courses on Cyber and Space Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance and an Analysis Refresher, and Modify Existing Critical-Thinking Courses -- Institutionalize Mentorship and Exchange of Knowledge Between Analysts -- Increase Priority of Some Assignments Within Joint and National Elements of the Intelligence Community -- 6. Findings and Recommendations:
• Summary of Findings -- Steps the U.S. Air Force Is Already Taking That Help Address the Lessons of the Past and to Prepare for the Future -- Recommendations: Define the Roles and Responsibilities of Analyst Airmen -- Train and Develop Analyst Airmen -- Equip Analyst Airmen with Tools -- Invest in Readiness of the Analyst Force -- Summary of Recommendations -- Closing Remarks -- Appendix A: A Perspective on the Relationship of National Security Strategy and Intelligence -- An Air University Paper -- Appendix B. Analyst Survey -- Bibliography.

ISBN

• 9780833092854
• 0833092855

Owning Institutions

Harvard Library