IT PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT BRANCH1

CASE STUDY:
Air Force Global Strike Command’s IT Portfolio Management Branch

Cesar A. Marrero

LEAD565– Knowledge Based Leadership

February13, 2013

Dr. Susan Sasiadek
Southwestern College Professional Studies

IT PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT BRANCH1

History/Background

Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC) was established on 7 August 2009as the result of an investigation following two incidents involving nuclear weapons: “In 2006, nuclear missile nose cones were inadvertently shipped to Taiwan, and in August 2007 the Air Force mistakenly flew nuclear weapons from Minot AFB, ND, to Barksdale AFB, LA.” (Baker, 2008, para. 12). The problems with our nation’s nuclear arsenal didn’t end there:in 2008the Air Force failed on five of its 22 nuclear surety inspections (Gertz, 2009, para. 22), which are designed to ensure the nuclear arsenal is safeguarded and protected.

As a result of these incidents, both the Department of Defense and the Air Force performed a number of inspections, internal investigations, and disciplinary actions to remedy these failures. ADoD task force report released October 2009 warned that the Air Force was not doing its job of securing and maintaining nuclear-missile forces. The report identified a "serious erosion of senior-level attention, focus, expertise, mission readiness, resources, and discipline in the nuclear weapons mission."(Gertz, 2009, para. 20). The finding of these reports and inspections highlighted one of the major problems the Air Force was experiencing at the time: troops did not clearly understand the deterrence mission of these expensive and extremely powerful strategic weapons. In addition, most nuclear missile and bomber troops felt that the DoD was putting too much emphasis on the wars in the Middle East and Afghanistan, which affected their overall attitude and decreased morale (Gertz, 2009, para. 24).

Located at Barksdale AFB innorthwestern Louisiana, Air Force Global Strike Command was created to rectify the downward trend in nuclear readiness and discipline. The command is now responsible for the management of the Air Force’s entire nuclear arsenal, assuming responsibility for all nuclear-capable assets of both Space Command (AFSPC) and Air Combat Command (ACC). Their purpose is clear, as stated in their vision: “American Airmen with special trust and responsibility for the most powerful weapons in our Nation's arsenal ... an elite, highly disciplined team ... a model command.” The commandconsists of 23,000 military and civilian professionals assigned to six wings, two geographically-separated squadrons and one detachment (AFGSC Fact Sheet, 2012).

Organizational Structure

The US Air Force is organized based on functional missionswithin the continental United States,or based on geographical missions overseas. The division of these functional and geographical missions is the basis for a major command, or MAJCOM, and each of the ten MAJCOMs (8 functional, 2 geographic) are directly subordinate to the Headquarters Air Force (HAF). All MAJCOMs are both interrelated and complementary, providing offensive, defensive, and support elements.

Within AFGSC headquarters, there are a number of directorateswith distinct responsibilities (manpower, operations, planning, communications, public affairs, finances, etc.). The “IT Portfolio Management Branch”, the subject of this case study, falls under the Directorate of Communications (referred to herein as “A6”), which has two distinct divisions: Operations (known as A6O) and Plans, PoliciesResources(known as A6X). The “IT Portfolio Management Branch” is located under the A6X hierarchy, and is designated as A6XC. The above title only describes a small portion of A6XC’s mission, which is essentially:the enforcement of all information technology management, compliance and cyber surety within thecommand. Within the periphery of this mandate, A6XC performs a number of additional responsibilities, including software license management, information assurance, certification and assurance of IT assets, procurement of IT assets, and annual funding validation for all IT systems within the command.

Internal strengths and weaknesses

As of this writing, AFGSC has been around for three years, so the overall status of A6XC can only be considered akin to a toddler learning how to walk without always bumping into things. The overall status is not indicative of the personnel assigned to this branch, who are extremely professional and take great pride in their work, but in the learning curve of this very young team (most individuals have only been in the branch for a few months). Besides this simple assessment, the following top four strengths have been identified:

  • Strong knowledge competence – all personnel assigned to A6XC are considered subject-matter experts (SMEs), and have consistently proven their knowledge in their respective areas of responsibility.
  • Portfolio management skills – some personnel are experts managing projects throughout their lifecycle, to include their funding, and are able to track a number of project statuses with accuracy.
  • Appropriate personnel controls – the organizational structure has a good mixture of the roles and responsibilities needed to properly manage the branch personnel.
  • R&D skills and leadership – all personnel have great ability to research and troubleshoot problems, determine the appropriate course of action, and take a leadership role in resolving the problems.

On the other hand, there are a number of weaknesses that are the primary cause of some reduction in productivity, failure to react in a timely manner, and present the possibility of becoming long-term problems. Here are the top four weaknesses:

  • Lack of process innovation – certain tasks and procedures are being performed manually, thus requiring more time than actually needed. There is a general lack of drive towards process improvement (“if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”).
  • Failure to disseminate real-time statuses – the branch does not share the progress of their tasks, processes, or initiatives in a real-time manner; instead, most of the status updates for upper management require too much manual work (such as updating PowerPoint slides or typing bullet statements in a weekly report).
  • Deficient use of technological tools – even though the command uses the typical enterprise tools on a daily basis (such as Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook and SharePoint), they are not being used to their full potential; not to mention that there are a number of other productivity tools available that could be utilized to make the branch (and the command) more efficient.
  • Single points of failure (no alternates) – certain functions are being performed by the same personnel, who have become so “mission-essential” that they have no alternates who can perform the job. In the event some catastrophic event would stop these individuals from accomplishing their jobs, the mission would suffer or come to a halt.

The external environment

A6XC’s external environment can’t be evaluated as one would evaluate a business … for example, this military organization does not manufacture a product for profit, does not need to evaluate production costs, and has no strategy to out-perform rivals. Thus, the organization can’t be analyzed using Porter's Five Forces Model (Hill, 2013, pg. c3). With that said, the following top four opportunitieshave been identified that would complement A6XC core practices and services to the entire command:

  • Enhance core business – there are a number of focal point functions that the branch could be performing (or supervising)for the entire command, but presently are not, to include: information security (INFOSEC) and computer security (COMPUSEC).
  • Enlarge corporate portfolio– there are new IT systems being brought online every year, and AFGSC should be proactively involved with their implementation.
  • Widen range of services – taking advantage of A6XC’s collective experience, they can provide additional services to the “customers” to help them sustain their cyber surety and implement process improvement to reach their mission goals.
  • Enter new related businesses– in addition to managing nuclear command and control systems, the branch should also be involved with enterprise-level systems.

Unfortunately, there are also external threats that hinder mission effectiveness for A6XC. Many of these external threats are mostly based on ignorance of the capabilities and responsibilities of both the division and branch. The top four threatsare identified as follows:

  • Increase in non-compliance events – lately, there has been an increase in the number of outside agencies that must interface with A6 that either refuse to participate in technology initiatives or simply ignore policy.
  • Bureaucratic roadblocks –there are roadblocks towards any attempt to implement technology solutions from external organizations, mostly due to the fact that they do not want to burden themselves with additional oversight or participation.
  • Outside units unfamiliar with A6XCs mission – many external agencies or units still do not know what the branch (let alone the division) is responsible for, thus sticking to their own internal processes instead of coordinating at the MAJCOM level.
  • Unable to advocate use of technology– this is also related to one of their weaknesses, but applies to the entire MAJCOM. Directorates are not coordinating their use of technology, and at times prefer manual processes to avoid complexity or change. Even though they are a technology-based organization,they still find themselves unable to be the driving force in technology advocacy.

SWOT Analysis

SWOT analysis is a strong tool that can be used for strategy formulation and selection. In spite of it being a subjective tool, it is intended to be used as a guide, not as a solution. A6XC can successfully build on the strengthsidentified, correct the weakness and protect against external threats, and can recognize and exploit new opportunities. Table 1 describes the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that have been described above. Due to the limited amount of time to prepare this case study, only the top four in each category were illustrated for this report:

POSITIVE / NEGATIVE
INTERNAL / STRENGTHS
- Strong knowledge competence
- Portfolio management skills
- Appropriate personnel controls
- R&D skills and leadership / WEAKNESSES
- Lack of process innovation
- Failure to disseminate real-time statuses
- Deficient use of technological tools
- Single points of failure (no alternates)
EXTERNAL / OPPORTUNITIES
- Expand core business
- Enlarge corporate portfolio
- Widen range of services
- Enter new related businesses / THREATS
- Increase in non-compliance events
- Bureaucratic roadblocks
- Outside units unfamiliar with the mission
- Unable to advocate use of technology

Table1. SWOT Analysis of A6XC

Corporate-level strategy

According to AFGSC’s public website, the command’s mission is to "Develop and provide combat-ready forces for nuclear deterrence and global strike operations –safe, secure, effective–to support the President of the United States and Combatant Commanders." (AFGSC Fact Sheet, 2012, para. 2). Using the SWOT analysis, it can be surmised that both the strengths and opportunities identified are designed to fulfill AFGSC’s mission statement of a safe, secure, and effective operational force, while the weaknesses and threats are hindrances that need to be addressed (for these same reasons). Fixing these weaknesses and resolving the threats would definitely improve the command’s mission accomplishmentof combat-ready forces for nuclear deterrence (which is, in essence, their corporate-level strategy).

Business-level strategy

At the business-level, A6XC is unique in its overall mission within the command. As stated before, the branch is the enforcer of all information technology management, compliance, and cyber surety for AFGSC, especially with regards to nuclear deterrence. Increasing the exposure of the branch’s reach and responsibility with regards to the nuclear mission would help give A6XC a greater posture in enforcing compliance and coordination with uncooperative external units. From within, the branch can focus their self-improvement efforts on repairing the identified weaknesses and enhancing their strengths. The goal of A6XC should be to become the single most reliable management source of all IT assets, a model for compliance enforcement, and the standard for all future cyber surety initiatives.

Structure and control systems

The nature of a military unit enables a level of structure and control not seen in most private or commercial ventures. The military system of rank hierarchy delineates with strong clarity what are the roles and responsibilities are for each individual within the organization. Most people familiar with the military structure and control are fully aware of the recognition and promotion systems, whichcan be considered to be both fair and stringent at times. Unfortunately, these controls are wholly dependent on the leadership, and are subject to both praise and criticism.

Recommendations

The following action list illustrates a suggested order of actions A6XC would need to accomplish in order to address their strategic goals. These ten steps don’t address all items identified in the SWOT, but will (at least) provide a strong framework for these problems to be resolved and future initiatives to become easier to implement:

STEP 1.Resolve bureaucratic roadblocks – this is more political than technical. Leadership needs to address the external agencies that are providing roadblocks (especially with regards to the use of technology), establish agreements and (if necessary) elevate their complaints to higher levels.

STEP 2.Increase training on the use of technological tools – all personnel need to obtain additional training in using the existing software, specifically, Microsoft SharePoint, Excel and Access. This initial step will help implement the next recommendations.

STEP 3.Establish a methodology to disseminate real-time statuses – using the existing technology at their disposal, A6XC needs to create status dashboards where anyone can view the current status of all their initiatives, tasks, and projects.

STEP 4.Eliminate all single points of failure – identify individuals who will function as alternates for all critical functions being performed by only one person, along with the creation of a system of online documentation and training for the alternates.

STEP 5.Enhance the core business– immediate address all of the focal point functions that the branch should be performing (or supervising) that aren’t being done, begin documenting their processes, and assign personnel to perform these functions.

STEP 6.Widen range of services – taking advantage of A6XC’s collective experience, by providing additional services to the “customers” to help them sustain their cyber surety and implement process improvement to reach their mission goals.

STEP 7.Familiarize outside units with the mission – using smart “marketing” techniques, A6XC should spread the word on what they do and how to contact them for assistance. Having an online presence that gives all “customers” easier access to policies, documents, process flows, etc. would help the unit’s visibility.

STEP 8.Promote process improvement and innovation – implement a consistent methodology to revisit and improve existing processes, while promoting new and innovative approaches to enhance efficiency.

STEP 9.Enlarge corporate portfolio – become more involved with any new IT systems being brought online, being proactively involved with their implementation.

STEP 10.Enter new related businesses – in addition to managing nuclear command and control systems, the branch should also be involved with enterprise-level systems.

References

AFGSC, Fact Sheet (February 2013). Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC):Fact Sheet. Retrieved February 11, 2013 from AFGSC Official website:

Baker, F. W. (October 27, 2008). Air Force Officials to Establish New Nuclear Major Command. Retrieved February 11, 2013 from website:

Gertz, Bill (February 4, 2009). "EXCLUSIVE: Air Force Fails New Nuclear Reviews". Retrieved February 10, 2013 from website:

Hill, C.W.L., Jones, G.R. (2013). Strategic Management: An Integrated Approach, TenthEdition. Cengage Learning: South-Western. Mason, Ohio