Defence

Capability Development Group

Turning strategy into capability

Lieutenant General David Hurley, Chief of Capability Development Group, has issued the inaugural Defence Capability Strategy, setting the baseline for future capability planning. Essentially it's about determining future capability needs, and turning capability concepts into reality... Cheryl Durrant explains.

In April 2005, the Defence Capability and Investment Committee approved the inaugural Defence Capability Strategy (DCS) as the baseline document for an enhanced capability planning process. This represents a large step towards the Chief of Capability Development Group implementing the Kinnaird Review's first recommendation.

The strategy consolidates Government directions - including the White Paper guidance, the outcomes of the 2003 Defence Update and Defence Capability Review, and other Government decisions. In doing so it establishes an agreed start point and focus for capability planning.

Strategically, it will ensure the ADF selects the right capability to meet Defence's strategic tasks, within Government funding. At a practical level, the DCS is designed to provide desk officers in the capability realm with a single one-stop shop for guidance on capability needs.

The DCS is positioned as the primary output from the needs phase of the capability development life cycle. The needs phase is the first part of the process described in the new Defence Capability Development manual that was highlighted in the March edition of Defence magazine.

In this phase, broad capability goals are derived from strategic guidance, future technology trends, future concepts and an assessment of the performance of the emerging force against the strategic tasks directed by Government.

Getting the needs phase right is a complex task which links military strategy and concepts to the future force. While the phase is conducted by Capability Development Group staff, it is heavily dependent on support from subject matter experts across all Groups in Defence.

The Chief of Capability Development Group's charter includes developing a coherent, cohesive, holistic and disciplined approach to capability and the definition of capability needs. It is therefore no surprise that the DCS is intended to provide guidance on all inputs to capability and does not focus solely on major capital acquisitions.

The needs phase of capability development - incorporating the DCS - will now be conducted annually to ensure that emerging capability challenges or gaps are identified and solutions found in a timely manner. This new annual process is called the Defence Capability Update (DCU).

The DCU process introduces more analytical rigour in determining future capability needs. The scope and depth of analysis will vary from year to year, depending on the extent of strategic change, the financial conditions and our understanding of the performance of the force described by the DCS.

Unlike previous efforts it is expected that the DCU will continually build a knowledge base to support future decisions, rather than reinventing the wheel in each cycle.

Some of the strengths of the revised DCU process include:

• better transparency between Government's strategic priorities and capability decisions;
• provision of a mechanism for Government to consider the balance between strategic and financial priorities;
• design of an efficient, balanced force structure that can respond to a range of contingencies by explicitly addressing those contingencies; and
• greater confidence that the range of expertise and information available has been appropriately built into the conclusions.

The DCU aims to identify any mismatch between the DCS capability goals, projected performance and resources, and recommend options to address this. It will also recommend areas for further study and these will feed into Defence's concept development and experimentation framework.

The activities that will form the basis of the 2005 DCU are:

• A broad assessment of the future force. Fundamental to the process is input from subject matter experts from the Services and Groups. This recognises that warfighting is still an art which values the judgements of its practitioners.
• The progression of supporting issues papers and studies. In parallel to the broad performance assessment, Capability Development Group will progress work on some specific issues that we know need closer examination. Two priority areas for 2005 are Lift and Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance and Electronic Warfare (ISREW), and roadmaps for these capability areas are being developed within Capability Development Group.
• Workshop on capability options. Having identified the performance gaps, a workshop on capability options at 1 Star level will be conducted. This workshop identifies and begins to define possible solutions.
• Programming workshop. The options workshop will be followed by a Programming workshop at 2 Star level, which will seek to rebalance the Defence Capability Plan.

The results of the DCU will be used to revise the DCS annually. This ensures that capability guidance remains current and relevant.

In summary, the inaugural DCS is not an end point - it is a starting point. In producing this document, Defence now has a better understanding of what is agreed and not agreed, and what work needs to progress. It meets the primary aim of providing a baseline for the new DCU process to move forward.

The DCS keeps Capability Development Group (CDG) on track to deliver on the reforms put in place following the formation of CDG in 2004. As such, the DCS is a critical element in the CDG providing value for money to Government, without compromising Australia's Defence capability.

Further information regarding the DCS, DCU, capability planning process, the ISREW or Lift Roadmaps is available from:

AIRCDRE Kym Osley, Director General Capability and Plans, (02) 6265 2888

Mr Martin Dunn, Director Capability Guidance, (02) 6265 4865

Ms Cheryl Durrant, Deputy Director Capability Guidance, (02) 6265 1138

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