Naval special warfare: identifying and prioritizing core attributes of the profession
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Authors
Teti, Jeremiah J.
Subjects
The Naval Special Warfare Profession
professional military education for Naval Special Warfare
Senior SEAL Professional Development
professional military education for Naval Special Warfare
Senior SEAL Professional Development
Advisors
Sepp, Kalev
Hocevar, Susan
Date of Issue
2014-12
Date
Dec-14
Publisher
Monterey, California: Naval Postgraduate School
Language
Abstract
Since 1944, naval special warfare (NSW) commanders and staffs have led battalion (O-5, U.S. Navy commander) and brigade (O-6, U.S. Navy captain) echelon task forces charged with conducting conventional and irregular warfare. History reveals that these duties often come with little or no notice, as experienced in Operations Desert Storm and Enduring Freedom. For more than a decade following Enduring Freedom, these requirements increased in frequency and scope. Now NSW routinely provides senior leadership to joint, inter-agency, inter-governmental, and multinational task forces. Yet current development efforts focus on building world-class individual operators and small units as opposed to senior leaders. This research employs a systems approach to analyze NSW’s professional development program. The project commenced by reviewing pertinent historical, doctrinal, and academic contributions. Next, a survey tapped into the experience of senior SEALs—leaders who ran deployed task forces (e.g., NSW task groups and task forces). Participants assessed the current system, prioritized aspects of the profession, and made recommendations to enhance development. Feedback revealed consensus regarding the desire to enhance development through institutional courses designed to prepare SEALs for senior assignments. The data help to define the NSW profession by better identifying and prioritizing the practical skills required by SEAL leaders today.
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Thesis
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Department
Defense Analysis (DA)
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Distribution Statement
Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.