Army preparing to stand up new organization to oversee its data environment
The Army is poised to set up a new command or center to oversee the service’s data environment, according to a senior officer.
Lt. Gen. Jeth Rey, deputy chief of staff, G-6, told DefenseScoop that he’s slated to brief Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George on Oct. 30 to get final approval of the “plan of action.”
The initiative is coming as the service is pursuing Next Generation Command and Control (NGC2) and other data-centric modernization initiatives.
“Data is the new ammunition, so we’re going to focus on it. And because of that, the team and I have said, ‘Hey, we have got to do something for the Army” enterprise, Rey told reporters Tuesday on the sidelines of the annual AUSA conference. “So we’re going to stand up what is called the Army data operations center or command. … The name hasn’t been labeled yet. But the team is actually in its infancy, standing up for [initial operating capability] to oversee the entire Army’s data environment when it comes to Next Gen C2 and really beyond that. It’s not only focused around Next Gen C2. It has a big role in there, but this command is going to actually look at data across all echelons.”
The new organization will be located at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, Rey told DefenseScoop.
After George gives the go-ahead, officials are planning to act quickly.
“Once that happens, we’re moving out. But the IOC for this command — I’m looking at within the next two weeks that the initial team is going to be stood up to get it done,” Rey told DefenseScoop.
The number of personnel that will be assigned to the new entity is still to be determined, but it could be anywhere from 200 to 300 people, according to the G-6 leader.
“I don’t know how we may collapse an organization in order to stand up an organization, but this is not like asking for additional personnel. We know they’re in our formation today,” Rey said.
The new entity is on the cusp of being stood up as the Army is trying to work through a variety of data-related issues.
Maj. Gen. Jake Kwan, director of strategic operations in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3/5/7, said the service needs to treat data as a strategic asset.
“Data is what’s going to enable that future fight. We’re working right now amongst the secretariat and … staff to make sure that we establish the appropriate policies and procedures on data standards, how we’re going to capture this data, how it’s going to be processed, how much is aggregated at various echelons. That’s going to be the nature of the future fight that we have to work through and work in conjunction with you out there to make sure we’ve got it right,” he told members of industry during a panel Tuesday at the AUSA conference.
