In an era of asymmetric threats and workforce demographic pressures, finding ways to share experiences and shorten the learning curve for military personnel has become crucial. Not all information has to be shared through formal channels. Nor should it, when speed is of the essence, or when it’s specialized knowledge for a specific group of people.

But the military is hierarchical by nature, which can make it difficult to cut through the structure to deliver information quickly to a target audience.

To address this, the Air Force is establishing Internet “communities of practice,” where sites will bring together widely dispersed groups to share information and solve problems.

The informal network of sharing lessons learned has always existed, but we’ve finally reached a point where a) we’ve got the technology to spread those lessons beyond an immediate physical location and b) we seem to have institutional recognition and acceptance of the practice. It will be interesting to see how well this develops, if the other services will take note (ground forces, I’m looking in your direction) and if this sort of thinking will energize current nascent efforts along these lines in the IC.

About the Author

Michael Tanji

Michael Tanji spent nearly 20 years in the US intelligence community. Trained in both SIGINT and HUMINT disciplines he has worked at the Defense Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, and the National Reconnaissance Office. At various points in his career he served as an expert in information warfare, computer network operations, computer forensics, and indications and warning. A veteran of the US Army, Michael has served in both strategic and tactical assignments in the Pacific Theater, the Balkans, and the Middle East.