Toward a Process for Engineering the Army Training System

Abstract

Training is a fundamental human activity practiced by corporations, governments, and the Army. In today’s military, training management is based on processes developed in WWII. Training is managed as a collection of similar activities, much the way it has been done for over 60 years. However, military training is more than a collection of activities, it is an enterprise system. This paper uses the emerging field of enterprise systems engineering (ESE) to develop a model that emphasizes the systems aspects of the training enterprise, while verifying the linkage from the strategic and operational goals of the Army to producing trained soldiers with the necessary skills. ESE includes the socio-economic-politico-technical context of complex systems while maintaining the rigor of systems engineering analysis. The result is a structured framework that highlights the importance of well-articulated training requirements and linking of those requirements to the implementation of training through the fundamental systems activities of systems analysis and training design.