As the military transitions toward Joint All-Domain Operations (JADO), what role do strategic leaders play in effectively managing these fundamental changes in the character of war? Because JADO requires seamless integration across domains and services, how do leadership practices need to adapt to this new operating environment? Specifically, to ensure the successful execution of JADO, how and when should a joint culture be inculcated into military leaders?
To operationalize this shift across the enterprise, how does the USAF organize, manage, train, and equip its personnel for JADO? At the functional level, should Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2) become a formal career field in its own right, with specialized training pipelines, standardized qualifications, and dedicated career paths to sustain elite C2 talent?
Ultimately, this research must define the specific leadership traits, institutional training structures, and talent management reforms required to successfully guide military institutions through this command-and-control evolution and cultivate a cohesive warfighting force for 21st-century conflict.
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- Hancock answers this by evaluating how different branches prepare their personnel for 2030 conflicts, arguing that effective leadership in joint operations requires moving away from rigid, service-centric career paths. He points to the Navy's Leader Development Framework and the Army's Command Assessment Program as holistic, thorough models for evaluating and developing both warfighting competence and character outside of traditional pipelines. To better inculcate a joint culture, Hancock recommends the Marine Corps prioritize joint professional military education (PME) opportunities—such as sending officers to the Naval War College—over unilateral Marine Corps courses, ensuring leaders are exposed to joint tactics and operations early in their careers.
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Spohn, Lt. Col. Jay R., "Capable--Affordable--Flexible: Marching Orders for Air Combat Command's Adversary Aircraft Recapitalization," AWC Strategic Studies paper, 2018, 24 pgs.
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- Anderson IV, Maj. Raymond A., Protecting the Human Link: Joint Terminal Attack Controller Survivability in the Age of Unmanned Systems and Advanced Air Defenses," AFGC thesis, 2026, 50 pgs.
- While not calling for an entirely new JADC2 career field, Anderson recommends establishing a Joint Pathway for Advanced JTAC Specialization, conceptually similar to Weapons School. These highly specialized controllers would focus on distributed fires integration, AI-enabled targeting, spectrum maneuver, and kill-chain orchestration, serving as integration leads to bridge the gap between emerging technology and tactical employment.
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