All posts by Nick Romanow

Call for Articles

Deadline Extended: Call for Articles on Navy and Maritime Cyber Capability and Threats

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Submissions Due: April 5, 2023
Topic Week Dates: April 17-21, 2023
Article Length: 1,000-3,000 words
Submit to: Content@cimsec.org

By Nicholas Romanow

The Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) ended the debate (for now) on whether the U.S. Navy needs a cadre of cyber officers. Section 1503 of the Act mandates that the Navy “establish and use” a cyber operations designator for officers and a cyber operations rating for enlisted personnel. It also prohibits members of existing information warfare designators from filling cyber-related billets and requires the Navy to submit a report to Congress in one year on the administration, training, and utilization of the Navy’s cyber personnel.

But the answer to this question opens up a range of new questions on cyber operations in the maritime domain. How should the Navy recruit, train, and retain cyber talent? What do cyber operations in a maritime environment look like? How will this investment in a Navy cyber community affect the Navy’s aviation, surface, subsurface, and special warfare communities? As the Navy develops this new cadre of talent, it needs to more deeply examine how it can leverage cyber in warfighting and peacetime operations.

Cyberspace is quite similar to the maritime environment. It is a domain wherein trillions of dollars of international commerce transits. It is not exclusively controlled by any single nation-state in particular. It is simultaneously a conduit for wealth and exchange yet also rife with peril and exploitation.

In theory, naval leaders should be in a prime position to understand the complex logic of cyberspace and tackle its dilemmas. Yet numerous other actors influence the maritime domain through cyber and depend on cyber for maritime access. What could be the risks of suffering malicious cyber effects on critical maritime infrastructure and platforms? How do maritime security and cybersecurity interact and depend on one another?

The Navy will finally have a specialist cyber cadre, but more remains to be done. As maritime and cyber connections grow and proliferate, these two domains will interact in complex ways to present advantage and threats across the spectrum of conflict. We invite authors to discuss these questions and more as we consider the future of Navy and maritime cyber. Send all submissions to Content@cimsec.org.

Ensign Nicholas Romanow, U.S. Navy, is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He is currently assigned to Fort Meade, Maryland, and working toward his qualification as a cryptologic warfare officer. He was previously an undergraduate fellow at the Clements Center for National Security. He is CIMSEC’s Social Media Coordinator.

The views presented are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Defense, Department of the Navy, or any other military or government agency.

Featured Image: Artwork created with Midjourney AI.

Call for Articles

Call for Articles: Navy and Maritime Cyber Capability and Threats

Leave a comment

Submissions Due: March 16, 2023
Topic Week Dates: March 27-31, 2023
Article Length: 1,000-3,000 words
Submit to: Content@cimsec.org

By Nicholas Romanow

The Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) ended the debate (for now) on whether the U.S. Navy needs a cadre of cyber officers. Section 1503 of the Act mandates that the Navy “establish and use” a cyber operations designator for officers and a cyber operations rating for enlisted personnel. It also prohibits members of existing information warfare designators from filling cyber-related billets and requires the Navy to submit a report to Congress in one year on the administration, training, and utilization of the Navy’s cyber personnel.

But the answer to this question opens up a range of new questions on cyber operations in the maritime domain. How should the Navy recruit, train, and retain cyber talent? What do cyber operations in a maritime environment look like? How will this investment in a Navy cyber community affect the Navy’s aviation, surface, subsurface, and special warfare communities? As the Navy develops this new cadre of talent, it needs to more deeply examine how it can leverage cyber in warfighting and peacetime operations.

Cyberspace is quite similar to the maritime environment. It is a domain wherein trillions of dollars of international commerce transits. It is not exclusively controlled by any single nation-state in particular. It is simultaneously a conduit for wealth and exchange yet also rife with peril and exploitation.

In theory, naval leaders should be in a prime position to understand the complex logic of cyberspace and tackle its dilemmas. Yet numerous other actors influence the maritime domain through cyber and depend on cyber for maritime access. What could be the risks of suffering malicious cyber effects on critical maritime infrastructure and platforms? How do maritime security and cybersecurity interact and depend on one another?

The Navy will finally have a specialist cyber cadre, but more remains to be done. As maritime and cyber connections grow and proliferate, these two domains will interact in complex ways to present advantage and threats across the spectrum of conflict. We invite authors to discuss these questions and more as we consider the future of Navy and maritime cyber. Send all submissions to Content@cimsec.org.

Ensign Nicholas Romanow, U.S. Navy, is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He is currently assigned to Fort Meade, Maryland, and working toward his qualification as a cryptologic warfare officer. He was previously an undergraduate fellow at the Clements Center for National Security. He is CIMSEC’s Social Media Coordinator.

The views presented are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Defense, Department of the Navy, or any other military or government agency.

Featured Image: Artwork created with Midjourney AI.

Human Factors Week

Human Factors Week Concludes on CIMSEC

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By Nicholas Romanow

Last week, CIMSEC published a series of articles focusing on the human factor of maritime and military affairs. These articles covered a wide range of topics, highlighting the complexity of the challenge of enabling the people of the maritime services to be the best they can be.

Many commentaries in the national security space lament personnel issues as sporadic difficulties that can be expediently solved via easy policy tweaks. For instance, it might be enticing to solve recent recruitment challenges with larger signing bonuses. While multiple of the articles in this series suggest policy-based solutions, one novel and important contribution is that all grappled with the inter-generational nature of the human elements of maritime affairs. Ideas such as naval capital towns and inclusive deckplates are not forged into reality overnight. If we are serious about competing for and acquiring top talent, the maritime and national security communities must think not months or years but rather decades into the future.

Any analysis of military affairs is incomplete without acknowledging the crucial role of technology. The past, present, and future of conflict are all defined by the various tools and weapons used from era to era. However, no innovation exists in a vacuum. Military technology is impactful only in the context of how it is used by humans to prosecute a war or conflict. As the articles from this topic week demonstrate, studying and understanding the human elements as they relate to technology and education must continue to be a core task.

While each of these articles is a welcome contribution to the field of talent management, they should not be seen as definitive answers but as starting points for continuing discussion. In this vein, here is a look back at the contributions to CIMSEC’s Human Factors topic week and a key question the maritime community should continue discussing well into the future.

“The Defense Department’s Unfinished DEI Business: A 10-Point Plan,”  by Captain John Cordle, (ret.), and LCDR Reuben Keith Green, (ret.)

  • How can the Sea Services avoid the polarizing tendency of “DEI” in order to make real progress that benefits personnel of the maritime services?

“Groton as a Case Study for Building Naval Capital Towns,” by Ryan C. Walker

  • How can the model of Groton as a Naval Capital Town be replicated in other areas to rebuild the American shipbuilding industry?

“Shifting the Role of Leader and Led: Using Year Group Cohorts to Accelerate Marine Corps Force Design,” by Travis Reese

  • How do we equip Marines early in their careers with the right intellectual tools and skills to shape force design through the year group cohort model?

“Weaponize PME to Improve the Force,” by Bobby Holmes

  • How can mid-career officers be persuaded to view professional military education (PME) as an opportunity for personal growth rather than a “check-in-the-box” for promotion?

“Educating Maritime Geostrategists for the Naval Services,” by Drake Long

  • How do we more directly involve junior personnel—who are typically involved in more mundane tactical and operational tasks—in the understanding and shaping of geostrategy?

We thank these authors for their excellent contributions on appreciating the human element in warfighting and maritime power.

Ensign Nicholas Romanow, U.S. Navy, is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He is currently assigned to Fort Meade, Maryland, and working toward his qualification as a cryptologic warfare officer. He was previously an undergraduate fellow at the Clements Center for National Security. He is CIMSEC’s Social Media Coordinator.

The views presented are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Defense, Department of the Navy, or any other military or government agency.

Featured Image: SOUTH CHINA SEA (Aug. 26, 2021) Sailors aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS O’Kane (DDG 77) heave a line during a replenishment-at-sea with the Henry J. Kaiser-class underway replenishment oiler USNS Tippecanoe (T-AO 199), not pictured. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Elisha Smith)

Human Factors Week

Human Factors Week Kicks Off on CIMSEC

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By Nicholas Romanow

Cyber. Missiles. Satellites. Drones. Most of the trending topics in current military affairs fixate on technology and material factors of warfare. These topics are certainly pivotal parts of the security landscape, but they are far from the full story. Even the most advanced autonomous systems are designed for the purpose of providing the human warfighter with a capability they would not otherwise have. The study of military affairs is incomplete without a thorough examination of how military personnel are recruited, trained, and retained.

While militaries often boast of their technical prowess, they are fundamentally human organizations. Wars are fought by and for people. Military technology will only ever be a tool used to advance the objectives and missions executed by the people who compromise militaries. We need look no further than recent events in Ukraine to see how a much larger and supposedly more capable Russian military was rendered subpar by deteriorating morale, manning shortfalls and gimmicks, and is now forced to conscript citizens of questionable military suitability to sustain its war of aggression. The human factor is difficult to quantify and measure, but this does not obscure its centrality to military and maritime operations. The human element of war is ignored at great peril.

“Taking care of our people” is more than just a slogan. It is a core mission. How well leaders cultivate the talents of their people is a direct reflection of their competence as a leader. Many officers seek their commission out of a desire to lead and serve, but junior officers must first be led and served by their seniors who can set the right example and show them the way. Discussing best practices in core leadership functions is vital not only for the workforce writ large, but for empowering emerging leaders with the knowledge and skills to lead others into an uncertain era of strategic competition.

This week, CIMSEC will publish a series of articles on this subject. As this challenge is relevant to members of all services at every career stage, we are fortunate to publish a wide range of perspectives. Below are the articles and authors being featured in this series, which may be updated with further submissions as Human Factors Week unfolds.

“The Defense Department’s Unfinished DEI Business: A 10-Point Plan,”  by Captain John Cordle, (ret.), and LCDR Reuben Keith Green, (ret.)
“Groton as a Case Study for Building Naval Capital Towns,” by Ryan C. Walker
“Shifting the Role of Leader and Led: Using Year Group Cohorts to Accelerate Marine Corps Force Design,” by Travis Reese
“Weaponize PME to Improve the Force,” by Bobby Holmes
“Educating Maritime Geostrategists for the Naval Services,” by Drake Long

Ensign Nicholas Romanow, U.S. Navy, is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He is currently assigned to Fort Meade, Maryland, and working toward his qualification as a cryptologic warfare officer. He was previously an undergraduate fellow at the Clements Center for National Security. He is CIMSEC’s Social Media Coordinator.

The views presented are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Defense, Department of the Navy, or any other military or government agency.

Featured Image: EAST CHINA SEA (Aug. 24, 2022) Sailors in the pilot house of the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville (CG 62) conduct force protection training in the East China Sea, Aug. 24, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Justin Stack)