Military Review English Edition July-August 2016 | Page 38

Unlike in conventional war, the United States does
not have a monopoly on the means to conduct cyberspace
operations. This requires the military community to assess
honestly its strengths and vulnerabilities when it comes

community with the resources, embraced values, and
behavior that promote an innovative mindset and
ability to evolve. A culture of innovation views new
thinking and experimentation that address operational,

(Photo by Capt. Meredith Mathis, U.S. Army)

A soldier assigned to the 780th Military Intelligence Brigade on Fort Meade, Maryland, sets up low-level voice intercept equipment
21 October 2015 during a cyber integration exercise on Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.

to offense and defense. The Army needs to approach the
information environment with the recognition that innovative solutions may be both external and internal.
While military innovation always played a role in
the advancement of warfighting, institutional headquarters often struggled to incorporate and support tactical
innovations. In many instances, this results in looking
outward for innovations and adopting them for internal
use through a top-down approach. Within the military,
leaders tend to favor the initiatives of a select few at
the top, often regardless of expertise, rather than those
of the population at large. However, the DOD needs
innovations introduced by individuals—a bottom-up
approach—to maintain the initiative in dynamic information and operating environments.
To affect operations, the cyberspace community must challenge the military norms and become a
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procedural, technical, and other challenges influencing
cyberspace operations as the norm.

The Innovation Imperative
Addressing cyberspace challenges by responding to
the innovation imperative requires leaders to adopt a
culture that fosters and rewards innovative practices.
Without leader emphasis, innovation initiatives will
fail. Retired Gen. Stanley McChrystal recounts in Team
of Teams how he realized that he needed a different
leadership style to defeat a highly adaptable enemy.
Rather than serve as a “chess master” and drive outcomes through top-driven decision-making, McChrystal
took on the role of a “gardener” and focused on shaping
the ecosystem.9 McChrystal describes how he shaped
culture by example and continuously driving the narrative.10 Like McChrystal, to shape a culture that propels
July-August 2016  MILITARY REVIEW