NetForce Command: an alternative for command and control in a changing world

The world around us is rapidly changing. Technological and economic developments are creating increased interconnectivity. This provides opportunities but also new challenges. New threats are continuously emerging and old threats are manifesting themselves in new and deceptive ways. Hierarchical command and control may no longer work in complex, dynamic and networked mission environments.

The armed forces need to change if they want to continue to be of decisive importance in the future. They have to seek out their assigned role and to adjust and adapt that role to stay effective in complex, dynamic mission environments. This book is meant to inspire, to stimulate conceptual thinking about NetForce Command and to encourage experimentation with new forms of command and control.

The book covers six main challenges in command and control: collaboration, self-synchronisation, orchestration, leadership, information management and hybrid swarming. Not only good food-for-thought for decisionmakers in Defence, but also for strategic leaders in the wider security and safety domain.

NetForce Command – An alternative for hierarchical command and control in complex, dynamic and networked mission environments describes the results of a four year TNO research programme, V1604 NetForce Command, that was carried out by TNO in collaboration with the Land Warfare Centre of the Royal Netherlands Army.