The Naval Innovation Advisory Council (NIAC) was launched in 2016 with a focus on modernization and bringing proven business techniques into the Department of the Navy (DoN) to better support the warfighter through improved business practices, reduced costs, and increased efficiencies. Evolving through its 2018 iteration, program leaders hand-picked critical thinkers across the Navy and Marine Corps to tackle challenging problems facing the DoN. These officers and enlisted personnel represented various communities and specialties: submarine warfare, naval construction, avionics, unmanned aerial systems (UAS), air traffic control, reconnaissance, and logistics.
Despite having diverse career paths and coming from various commands, all had one common mission—to analyze critical problems facing the DoN and develop actionable recommendations for senior leaders. In this capacity, contrasted significantly from a fellowship, tour with industry, or an academic program, the researchers shared a unique opportunity to independently challenge themselves while delivering tangible and timely benefits to the DoN. With this research latitude, the NIAC earned accolades and made an impact in numerous areas during its short-lived existence. Despite the organization’s unique design, diverse personnel resourcing, and underpinnings of innovation, the NIAC construct fizzled.
Going into the 2018 iteration of the NIAC, the organization seemed to be on solid footing, attracting a diverse group of researchers from the fleet who could conduct research from unbiased and independent perspectives. Several of these officers and senior non-commissioned officers reported to the NIAC with ideas for research topics carried over from their real-world experiences at tactical/operational commands. After a few weeks of indoctrination training at the MITRE Corporation to bolster an innovation mindset, the researchers were scheduled to meet with the Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) to obtain his guidance/concurrence on which problem sets should be targeted by the NIAC researchers. However, meetings with senior DoN leadership failed to materialize because of scheduling conflicts and other factors. Prospective research topics subsequently were approved by results-focused leadership within the Strategy & Innovation (S&I) Division under the Deputy Undersecretary of the Navy for Management (DUSN(M)), which since has been eliminated and realigned. From the perspective of NIAC researchers, the lack of a meeting with the SECNAV or other senior leaders was an ominous sign for the program.
Researchers returned to their work locations, either at the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) on the West Coast or at the MITRE Corporation on the East Coast, to initiate research. These sites provided unique work environments away from the influences of politics, funding, and “rice bowls” common to military commands and most organizations. While this arrangement facilitated access to analytical assistance and academic knowledge, drawbacks were the lack of alignment and limited relationships between researchers and problem-set stakeholders. The individual researchers would need to foster these relationships by gaining credibility and respect within appropriate communities and networks. Luckily, they possessed initiative, determination, and professional passion to identify key stakeholders and earn their trust. In retrospect, network-building could have been facilitated by aligning researchers up front with these stakeholders to open doors and gain legitimacy for the NIAC effort. The NIAC researchers would need to remain objective and independent to deliver unbiased recommendations for senior DoN leadership.
The 2018 NIAC researchers pressed on with their efforts through the spring of 2018, developing relationships and obtaining quantitative and qualitative data to complete their projects. During this time, significant restructuring occurred within the staff directorates overseeing the program. Funding was eliminated along with the prospects for a 2019 NIAC. The researchers, however, maintained a focus on delivering quality research products in support of the warfighter. Mirroring the diversity of the NIAC team, their research delivered unique recommendations in conjunction with prototypes, visions, and roadmaps to address complex problems facing the DoN. The researchers are finalizing their papers and products, and several of already are on track to brief senior leadership, notwithstanding the demise of the NIAC program. Without conducting a deep dive, the problem areas and their advisors provide a quick look at the research challenges targeted and tackled:
- A “Lean Startup” Approach to Small Unmanned Systems (Lieutenant Colonel Noah Spataro, U.S. Marine Corps)
- Developing a Bulk Fuel Distribution Strategy for Maritime Support to Forces Ashore (Lieutenant Colonel Gene Hoffler, U.S. Marine Corps)
- Neural Networks for Sensor Exploitation at Machine Speed and Scale (Lieutenant Austin Anderson, U.S. Navy)
- The Design of Naval Swarming Logistics for Dispersed Military Operations (Lieutenant Art Griffin, U.S. navy)
- Intelligence Augmentation (IA) for Enhancing Aviation Command and Control Processes (Captain Dan Tadross, U.S. Marine Corps)
- Unmanned Systems Integration in Support of Fleet Reconnaissance (Staff Sergeant Matt Foglesong, U.S. Marine Corps)
- Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Transform DON Maintenance (Petty Officer Rich Walsh, U.S. Navy)
The positive impact of the NIAC still reverberates throughout the halls of the Pentagon and across various organizations with senior leaders continuing to praise the results and value-added recommendations. Some leaders are surprised to discover that the program was canceled. How did that happen? The NIAC had the key ingredients for a success story: critical thinkers from the fleet, relevant issues to the DoN, and adequate (at least initially) funding and personnel to conduct research. Along with the typical “blame on politics,” the NIAC withered away because of a lack of advocacy, championing, and ownership by senior leaders. While myriad research organizations exist to support the DoN, either nonprofit or from private industry, the NIAC was a unique program to benefit the organization and an opportunity for active-duty researchers with operational experience to tackle challenges and deliver results. Current and future initiatives, especially those with a similar innovation twist, should heed lessons learned from the deceased NIAC: gain and maintain support and committed advocacy from senior leaders, or face the consequences.
