All posts by Dmitry Filipoff

Integrated Campaigning Week

Integrated Naval Campaigning Topic Week Concludes on CIMSEC

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By Dmitry Filipoff

Last week CIMSEC featured articles submitted in response to our call for articles on integrated naval campaigning, issued in partnership with the Naval Postgraduate School Foundation.

The 2022 National Defense Strategy encouraged defense policymaker and the services to organize their efforts in the form of campaigns. These more long-term and integrated efforts aim to enhance competitiveness and unity of effort. For navies, there are abundant opportunities to structure efforts into campaigns. From competing with undersea gray zone activity in the Indo-Pacific, to leveraging unmanned systems to change a competitor’s risk calculus, navies can adopt more integrated and long-term methods of competition through campaigning. But navies must also understand their limits, whether it be force generation or other resource factors, to better understand the extent to which they can realistically pursue campaigns. Navies must carefully weigh these considerations are they structure their many efforts into concerted campaigns.

The featured authors are listed below, and we thank them for their excellent contributions.

“Revise Force Generation to Create Campaigning Opportunities,” by CDR Brett LeFever

Looking at both sides of these resourcing strategies, the Navy needs to answer the hard questions of both campaigning capacity and effectiveness, allowing the department to evaluate campaigning with a budget lens. This could provide a different strategy for future defense budgets and resourcing.

“The Bay of Bengal Gray Zone: U.S. Navy Roles in Integrated Campaigning,” by Mohammad Rubaiyat Rahman

The geostrategic situation in the Bay of Bengal reflects the need for a concept of integrated naval campaigning in support of a rules-based Indo-Pacific. The significance of this maritime zone is looming larger in the strategic calculus of the Indo-Pacific region and has become a central arena for gray zone competition, especially between Indian and Chinese maritime forces.

“Designing Maritime Campaigns with Unmanned Systems: Overcoming the Innovation Paradox,” by James J. Wirtz

The Navy needs to consider how else it can leverage unmanned systems in campaigns, and how these systems can open up unique options for enhancing naval campaigns in pursuit of deterrence.

Dmitry Filipoff is CIMSEC’s Director of Online Content. Contact him at [email protected].

Featured Image: PACIFIC OCEAN (June 12, 2023) – An MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter from the “Screamin’ Indians” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 6 flies near the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Decatur (DDG 73) as it approaches the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68). (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Hannah Kantner)

Integrated Campaigning Week

Integrated Naval Campaigning Topic Week Kicks Off on CIMSEC

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By Dmitry Filipoff

This week CIMSEC will be featuring articles submitted in response to our call for articles on integrated naval campaigning, issued in partnership with the Naval Postgraduate School Foundation.

The 2022 National Defense Strategy calls for integrated campaigning as a more effective method of competing. What does integrated campaigning mean for naval forces and maritime security? How much capacity do forces really have to engage in campaigning as envisioned? Authors address these questions and consider how campaigning can influence the competition. We thank them for their contributions.

“Revise Force Generation to Create Campaigning Opportunities,” by CDR Brett LeFever

“The Bay of Bengal Gray Zone: U.S. Navy Roles in Integrated Campaigning,” by Mohammad Rubaiyat Rahman

“Designing Maritime Campaigns with Unmanned Systems: Overcoming the Innovation Paradox,” by James J. Wirtz

Dmitry Filipoff is CIMSEC’s Director of Online Content. Contact him at [email protected].

Featured Image: PHILIPPINE SEA (June 9, 2023) – The U.S. Navy’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) sails in formation with French Navy Aquitane-Class frigate FS Lorraine (D657). (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Ryre Arciaga)

Warfighting Flotilla

Flotilla Notes Series Concludes on CIMSEC

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By Dmitry Filipoff

This week CIMSEC concludes a special series of notes written by Warfighting Flotilla members to commemorate the second anniversary of the Flotilla. Members discussed practical steps on how to put warfighting first and sharpen deckplate priorities. From organizing war councils to studying doctrine, to improving time management and risk tradeoffs, there are numerous recommendations for how warfighters can double down on core responsibilities.

We thank these authors for their thoughtful contributions.

“Warfighting Culture Starts with the CO,” by Jamie McGrath

“Every aspect of shipboard life is connected to warfighting and therefore should be treated as such. This ethos begins with the commanding officer, but must also be embraced by the wardroom and the chief’s mess.”

“Prepare for the Spectrum of Competition and Warfighting,” by Doug Kettler

“The first duty of a military leader is to ensure their unit is prepared for combat. However, when viewed through the lens of the competition continuum, units must also be prepared to conduct operations short of armed conflict.”

“Command by Example: Learning from San Jacinto’s War Council,” by Capt. Matthew Sharpe (ret.) and GSCM Rich Feldman (ret.)

“With Alexander and his Companions as a model, a select group of officers and enlisted leaders aboard USS San Jacinto (CG 56) met periodically to break bread, bond as warriors, and develop a shared vision of mission success. We called it the War Council.”

“Risk and Time: Calculating Tradeoffs in Warfighting Management,” by Barney Rubel

“Management, defined as the effective use of resources, is a process and skill that permeates the preparation and execution of warfighting. Commanders can prioritize several specific areas to improve their warfighting management.”

“Focus Areas for Putting Warfighting First,” by CDR Paul Nickell

“Marine Corps Doctrinal Publication (MCDP) 1, Warfighting, offers practical steps to emphasize warfighting preparation that each servicemember can implement now. Some of these steps pertain to focus areas that include doctrine, professionalism, training, professional military education, equipping, and personnel management.”

“Streamline Certification and Leverage Lessons Learned,” by Tony Carrillo

“Management makes warfighting possible, but management that enables warfighting needs to be better managed itself. Namely, overlapping lines of reporting and the lack of a strong feedback mechanism to spread the best practices of successful ships are hampering the Navy’s ability to maintain its warfighting dominance.”

“Senior Leaders Must Own the Lack of Warfighting Focus,” by CDR Paul W. Viscovich, USN (ret.)

“If senior Defense Department civilian and military leaders do not seriously convert organizational priorities toward warfighting, any lower-echelon attempt to refocus fighting forces on their core responsibility will achieve only marginal effect. Senior leaders must grasp how deckplate-level reality has become suffocated by miscellanea accumulating from decades of poorly prioritized requirements.”

Dmitry Filipoff is CIMSEC’s Director of Online Content and Community Manager of the Flotilla. Contact him at [email protected].

Featured Image: The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 54) fires a 5-inch gun during a live-fire gunnery exercise aboard the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 54) in Sagami Wan the Philippine Sea, Sept. 21, 2023. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Ryre Arciaga)

Flotilla Tactical Notes

Flotilla Notes Series Kicks Off on CIMSEC

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By Dmitry Filipoff

Two years ago, CIMSEC launched an expansive new initiative – the Warfighting Flotilla. In the Flotilla, warfighters and navalists come together to discuss naval warfighting, operational learning, and the state of the naval profession. Since its founding, this new naval professional society has grown to more than 450 members and hosted dozens of virtual discussions.

CIMSEC is launching a special series of short notes to commemorate the second anniversary of the Flotilla. Flotilla members were provided with a specific prompt: In 500 words or less, how can warfighting be better prioritized through deliberate management? What practical steps can leaders take to emphasize warfighting in their organizations? Members were encouraged to share their thoughts on how to translate a focus on warfighting first into tangible practices.

The featured authors are listed below, and we thank them for their contributions. Also see our upcoming Flotilla sessions for November, and visit the Flotilla homepage to join our growing membership and learn more about this community, its activities, and what drives it.

“Warfighting Culture Starts with the CO,” by Jamie McGrath

“Prepare for the Spectrum of Competition and Warfighting,” by Doug Kettler

“Command by Example: Learning from San Jacinto’s War Council,” by Capt. Matthew Sharpe (ret.) and GSCM Rich Feldman (ret.)

“Risk and Time: Calculating Tradeoffs in Warfighting Management,” by Barney Rubel

“Focus Areas for Putting Warfighting First,” by CDR Paul Nickell

“Streamline Certification and Leverage Lessons Learned,” by Tony Carrillo

“Senior Leaders Must Own the Lack of Warfighting Focus,” by CDR Paul W. Viscovich, USN (ret.)

Dmitry Filipoff is CIMSEC’s Director of Online Content and Community Manager of the Flotilla. Contact him at [email protected].

Featured Image: PACIFIC OCEAN (July 14, 2016) Sailors aboard the guided-missile cruiser USS Princeton (CG 59) fire an RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missile during an international sinking exercise, or SINKEX, for Rim of the Pacific 2016. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Jason Noble/Released)