Military Review English Edition July-August 2016 | Page 34

to include reading and discussions of high-level strategic documents such as the Quadrennial Defense Review,
the National Security Strategy, and the Army Operating
Concept, and what they mean for the future of the Army.
Additionally, commanders must ensure force-management instruction is provided to NCOs. NCOs must
not be overlooked in any force-management training
opportunities since they are often the ones implementing, testing, evaluating, and providing feedback to
force-management solutions. They need to understand
the importance of their roles in the force-management
processes more than anyone else.
Finally, two recommended readings are the U.S. War
College’s How the Army Runs: A Senior Leader Reference
Handbook and Kevlar Legions: The Transformation of the
U.S. Army, 1989–2005 by Gen. John S. Brown.21 How the
Army Runs, available on the Army Force Management
School and Army War College websites, explains many
of the key Army force-management processes. Kevlar
Legions traces the development of the Army structure
and major equipment from 1989 through 2005.

Conclusion
A recent CGSOC graduate serving in West Africa
wrote to his Fort Leavenworth force-management
instructor urging him to “tell students to study force
management and OCS hard, because division and
above is where majors go to ‘row the boat.’” He said,
“I am always referring to my class slides.”22 CGSOC
graduates cannot escape being part of the force-management process as they serve in field grade positions
across the force in operational and strategic positions
regardless of specialty or branch. The effort they
put into being a competent professional within the
business of the Army will determine not only how
successful their career is but, more importantly, how
well the Army changes to prevent, shape, and win in a
complex world.

The author would like to thank the many peers and
students that reviewed and provided input to this article.

Biography
Col. James Lowry Kennedy Jr., U.S. Army, retired, is an assistant professor at the U.S. Army Command and
General Staff College campus at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, teaching force management and sustainment. He holds a BS
in chemistry from Presbyterian College, an MS in logistics management from the Florida Institute of Technology,
and an MMAS in military history from the Command General Staff College. He is working on a master of education degree from George Mason University.

Notes
Epigraph. G.H. Decker, “The Comptroller’s Role in Management of the Army” (lecture, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, 1953).
1. Armed Forces, 10 USC § 3013(c)(4).
2. Ibid., § 3032(b)(1).
3. Army Regulation (AR) 71-11, Total Army Analysis (TAA)
(Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office [GPO], 29
December 1995), 9, defines force management as “the process
of determining force requirements and alternative means of
resourcing requirements by allocating resources and assessing
the utilization [of ] resources to accomplish Army functions and
missions.”
4. U.S. Government Accountability Office, “Defense Infrastructure: Army and Marine Corps Grow the Force Construction Projects Generally Support the Initiative,” Report
to Congressional Committees, March 2008, accessed 3 May
32

2016, http://www.gao.gov/assets/280/273160.pdf; William M.
Donnelly, Transforming an Army at War: Designing the Modular
Force, 1991-2005 (Washington, DC: Center of Military History,
2007).
5. Tyrone Marshall, “Readiness Degraded to Historically
Low Levels,” U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) website, 11
March 2015, accessed 2 May 2016, http://www.defense.gov/
news/newsarticle.aspx?id=128344.
6. Army Doctrine Reference Publication (ADRP) 6-22, Army
Leadership (Washington, DC: U.S. GPO, August 2012), 9-4.
7. “What Is Force 2025 and Beyond?” Army Capabilities
Integration Center website, accessed 3 May 2016, http://www.
arcic.army.mil/Initiatives/force-2025-beyond.aspx.
8. Figure 1 provides perspective on specific areas of Army
management. Army budget based on FY16 base budget request
plus overseas contingency operations request. For annual budget
information, see Thomas Horlander, “FY 2016 Army Budget
July-August 2016  MILITARY REVIEW