Warfighter Support Update: BTA Provides U.S. European Command with Business Operations Capability
By S. Smith
Business Transformation Agency
August 21, 2008
Gallagher and Ritchie participate in discussions.
Garmisch, Germany – The Business Transformation Agency (BTA) co-hosted the EUCOM 2020: Partnership Building Symposium this month, as part of its ongoing efforts to support business operations and the ever-changing role of combatant commands. The event, held in Garmisch, Germany, engaged the U.S. European Command (EUCOM) and representatives of other U.S. government agencies, industry, academia and non-governmental organizations with an interest in business and security concerns for Europe for the next 12 years.
“Bringing together these various groups has a wonderful impact of making you think about what you have not thought about before,” said Vice Adm. Richard K. Gallagher, Deputy Commander, EUCOM, as the Command considers its future. “In the warfighting business, the reason it takes so much planning and coordination is because you have many different groups and organizations working together – whether they be the front line or the support forces. Therefore, the business rules and the (capabilities) of how we share information and how we work together become critical,” said Gallagher. “The BTA is implementing available features today…best practice of doing business. Instead of inaction, (BTA) brings action.”
Amb. Michael Greenlee, U.S. State Department Bureau of Political Military Affairs, leads a panel discussion on the perspective of other government agencies.
“What we’re seeing is the business mission area and the warfighter mission area coming together in an operational theater and that’s transformational,” noted BTA’s Warfighter Support Office (WSO) Director Bob Love. “The symposium represents another activity in which the BTA is directly engaged with transforming business operations in support of the combatant commands. It represents how we are influencing, together with the combatant commander, how they will approach events in the future with a greater focus on the business side of the equation.”
Michael Ritchie, Director, Command Interagency Engagement Group, EUCOM is grateful for BTA’s help through WSO: “We never would have been able to do this to the level we did. No one has done (an event) like this before…we have demonstrated that there is tremendous value added.”
Dr. Josef Joffe, publisher/editor of German newspaper Die Zeit, gave the keynote speech “Strategic Issues During the Coming Decade”.
The symposium is an example of how interagency cooperation and engagement works, according to Michael Considine, Director for Eurasia Affairs and Intellectual Property Issues, U.S. Chamber of Commerce International Division.“It’s a good opportunity for the Defense establishment to understand all of the other players in the private sector and the role that they may be able to play in helping EUCOM establish its mission.”
Ritchie also noted the myriad of organizations represented. “Over 100 people now know who they should contact,” said Ritchie. The week-long symposium included attendees from more than 30 government agencies, businesses, universities and other organizations.
Kenneth Yamashita, Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator, Europe and Eurasia, U.S. Agency for International Development said he was glad to play a part in the success of the event. “This event has been very useful. Obviously, there is much to be done moving forward. It’s just the beginning. I hope that, with other meetings of this kind, we’ll be able to flush out the details,” said Yamashita.
Chief economist Gene Huang of FedEx spoke on the view from the private sector.
“The combatant commanders and their staffs are thinking about the business mission area – they may not think of it consciously that way – but they are now thinking of the capability set that the business mission area brings to their area of operations, with a greater emphasis on non-kinetic operations (non-combat activities). This includes what business people can bring to a developing nation or an environment in order to avoid us moving from a peaceful to more of a combat environment,” said Love.
According to Ritchie, a series of future symposia are planned to address the top three prioritized issues and concerns identified at EUCOM 2020.