Military Transformation: Additional Actions Needed by U.S. Strategic Command to Strengthen Implementation of Its Many Missions and New Organization

U.S. Strategic Command has taken actions that are consistent with the intent of GAO's recommendation. Initially, in a 2007 response to our request for follow-up, the U.S. Strategic Command stated that it was currently revising its concept of operations for its service components, which would provide the guidance that GAO recommended. This guidance was to have been completed after October 2007. Such guidance to the service components is included in the most recent version of the command's concept of operations, which was published in October 2009. Additionally, in August 2010 the command indicated that had more clearly defined and provided specific information to its service components about their responsibilities, requirements, relationships, and expectations for supporting the command's headquarters and subordinate mission organizations in other ways. Noting that the command had continued to evolve and mature its organizations in ways that overlapped GAO's recommendations, U.S. Strategic Command indicated in 2010 that the command's guidance and expectations for its service components was documented in U.S. Strategic Command's Annual Operations Order, which is prepared by the command headquarter's Global Operations Directorate. Based on these actions, we conclude that U.S. Strategic Command has implemented steps that are in line with what GAO recommended in its 2006 report.

U.S. Strategic Command has taken steps consistent with GAO's recommendation that the command establish a communications strategy to guide and coordinate its efforts to conduct outreach with other combatant commands and Defense and other organizations; develop effective relationships and communications; promote and educate others about the value of its mission and capabilities; and obtain information on how the command can best support other commands and organizations. In 2007 U.S. Strategic Command stated to GAO that, as a supporting command to the geographic combatant commands, it maintained a senior officer representative at each combatant command headquarters to provide high-level support and coordination with these organizations on a continuous basis. The command also stated that it maintains a high-level, continuous presence at the Joint Staff. The command added that it provided and promoted insight to all of its activities to Defense and other organizations via a classified internet presence called the Strategic Knowledge Integration Web (SKIWeb) application. Additionally, U.S. Strategic Command stated that it provided Web-based mission area training for its missions to Defense organizations via Joint Forces Command's Joint Knowledge Development and Distribution Capability website. In August 2010 U.S. Strategic Command stated that it continued to evolve and mature its approach to communications. The command established a cell within the Commander's group for strategic communications to lead its effort, and has implemented other efforts that overlapped GAO's recommendation to develop a communications strategy. For example, GAO personnel have attended USSTRATCOM-sponsored symposia on nuclear deterrence and cyber-warfare which, along with a third annual symposium on space, are intended to enhance the level of global strategic dialogue and communicate U.S. Strategic Command's support to other organizations. Videos and other materials from these symposia are also posted to the command's website, which broadens its exposure to outside organizations. The Commander, U.S. Strategic Command also testified in March 2010 that the command ensures that its communications and support to the other combatant commands are enhanced by deploying teams worldwide to provide in-theater subject-matter expertise and facilitate more effective employment of the command's capabilities in intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, space, operational security, electronic warfare, and cyber-warfare. By taking these steps, we conclude that the U.S. Strategic Command has implemented actions that are in line with our recommendation.

In commenting on our recommendation that U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) strengthen the support it receives from the U.S. Joint Forces Command for its joint exercise program, DOD generally agreed that (1) USSTRATCOM should identify and request, in a timely manner, the long-term services and resources required from the U.S. Joint Forces Command's Joint Warfighting Center to support USSTRATCOM's exercise program and to reach agreement on the level of support provided; (2) the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness and the Commander, U.S. Joint Forces Command, in the near term, should make any possible adjustments among the Joint Warfighting Center's current resources to more fully support USSTRATCOM's program; and (3) the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness and the Commander, U.S. Joint Forces Command, in the long term, should incorporate USSTRATCOM's requirements for support into the Joint Warfighting Center's plans. DOD has taken several actions that fully implement our recommendation. First, in an official response in August 2007 to our request for follow-up on this report, USSTRATCOM stated that its command and U.S. Joint Forces Command have an agreement stating that the Joint Warfighting Center will support two of USSTRATCOM's annual command-wide exercises. According to an Office of the Secretary of Defense official, this agreement is documented by U.S. Joint Force Command's Joint Training Plan for fiscal years 2008-2010, which requires the Joint Warfighting Center to work with each combatant command to identify the types of services that it would provide in support of two training events or exercises per year. Second, DOD has established rules for the Joint Warfighting Center to adjust its resources to better support USSTRATCOM exercises, subject to resource availability. For example, the U.S. Joint Forces Command's Joint Training Plan allows the Joint Warfighting Center to be prepared to support emerging, real world exercise support requirements at the request of combatant commanders and based on available resources. Additionally, DOD's management principles for supporting combatant command exercises state that funds could be increased for a combatant command's exercise support if another combatant command voluntarily gives up one or both of their supported exercises. Third, DOD has established department-wide guidance that would ensure that the Joint Warfighting Center incorporates USSTRATCOM's requirements in its long-term funding plans. In March 2008 the Office of the Secretary of Defense and Joint Staff established overarching management principles, planning assumptions, funding rules, and funding priorities for DOD's program to address the combatant commanders' training requirements. These principles state that the combatant commands, services, Joint Staff, and Office of the Secretary of Defense will annually reach agreement on the level of Joint Warfighting Center support to each combatant command's exercise program for the following year, and forecast the level of support required for the second year. As a result, the Joint Warfighting Center will be able to consider and incorporate USSTRATCOM's support requirements as it prepares its budget proposals.