Testing in a Joint Environment Roadmap - U.S. Army Operational ...

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Testing in a Joint Environment Roadmap
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 PURPOSE
In a meeting in December, 2002, Secretary Rumsfeld offered the Operational Test Agency
(OTA) commanders the opportunity to provide ideas related to his initiatives and priority list. I
responded in my memorandum of December 13, 2002, as follows:
“… While other recommendations are forthcoming, I believe one item should top the list:
• To strengthen our joint warfighting capabilities, the Department should not only “train as we
fight” but also “test as we fight.”
The Department has acted to improve joint operational training through the creation of a Joint
National Training Center. I believe it should act to also create a Joint Test and Evaluation Capability.
…
Infrastructure requirements (ranges, instrumentation, etc.) for both training and testing are similar.
We should base future infrastructure decisions on a corporate perspective that satisfies both joint
operational training and joint operational testing priorities.“ 1
The Strategic Planning Guidance (SPG) tasking me to develop a roadmap to enable test and
evaluation (T&E) in a joint environment is the result of the initiative the Secretary and I
addressed in 2002, and the Secretary’s commitment to “get folks working on those ideas.”
“Joint Testing in Force Transformation (U)
(U) Developing and fielding joint force capabilities requires adequate, realistic test and evaluation in a
joint operational context. To do this, the Department will provide new testing capabilities and
institutionalize the evaluation of joint system effectiveness as part of new capabilities-based processes. The
Director, Operational Test and Evaluation (D(OT&E)) will develop a roadmap for the Deputy Secretary of
Defense no later than May 2004 that identifies the changes needed to ensure that test and evaluation is
conducted in a joint environment and facilitates the fielding of joint capabilities." (Pre-Decisional) 2
The SPG's Appendix E, item E08, requires coordination with the Under Secretary of Defense for
Acquisition, Technology and Logistics (USD(AT&L)); the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS); the
Service Secretaries; the Commander, Joint Forces Command (JFCOM); and the Under Secretary of
Defense for Personnel and Readiness (USD(P&R)).
The Secretary's Joint Testing in Force Transformation guidance establishes policy that the
Department will conduct its testing in a joint environment where applicable, and will provide the
resources required. This policy supports two of the Secretary's top priorities: "Strengthening
1 The full memorandum and the Secretary’s reply are at Appendix A.
2 Though approved in the SPG, this guidance remains Pre-Decisional until the roadmap is approved.
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