Field artillery institutional transformation.

The strategic landscape has changed, and our Army is on an aggressive path of transformation to reshape how we train and fight. The emphasis is on the development of technologies that will enhance our forces' deployability, lethality, mobility, agility, responsiveness, survivability and sustainability. As in past periods of significant change, how the Army integrates new technologies into its doctrine, training, leader development, organizations, material and soldier development (DTLOMS) will determine the success or failure of the transformation efforts.

The Army is transforming pervasively, including its operational, institutional and sustainment base--starting at the top with the realignment of the Army staff with the Secretariat. The Army staff realigned with the Secretary of the Army staff to gain efficiencies aimed at increased flexibility and to reduce bureaucratic processes that stymie change.

In the same light, the FA School is transforming to improve staff efficiencies and integrate the development of branch capabilities to ensure the FA will contribute most effectively to the future ObjectiveForce. The school's initial transformation is part of the Training and Doctrine Command's (TRADOC's) Institutional Transformation Initiative that several branch schools are in the process of implementing, called the interim institutional model.

The TRADOC initiative creates a Futures Development Integration Center (EDIC) for each branch to integrate doctrine, training and combat developments. The recent creation of the FDIC at Fort Sill eliminated the Field Artillery School's Warfighting Integration and Development Directorate (WIDD). (See the figure on Page 36.) Many of the Field Artillery School functions affected by the initiative had been fragmented over the past decade due to military and civilian personnel reductions and force structure initiatives.

The FDIC is designed to integrate matrix-managed functions to maximize the development of FA systems, not only within the FA branch, but also across battlefield functional areas (BFAs) and our sister services. Matrix-managed functions make the most of the organization's available expertise; the experts (such as systems analysts or training developers) work on an "as needed" basis across multiple projects as opposed to working fulltime on one project.

TRADOC's long-term goal is to establish centers under which related groups of FDICs would operate as one organization per center, helping to eliminate "stovepipe" doctrine, training and combat developments. Although the number and types of centers are yet to be determined, they could include effects integration, maneuver, maneuver support and sustainment centers plus an overarching battle command center, the latter perhaps at Fort Leavenworth.

The implementation of TRADOC's objective institutional model in the long term may move FDIC assets to the various centers and create Leader Training Centers in place of the more traditional branch schools. To that end, the new FA FDIC is separate from the Field Artil lery School, and its director reports to the Commanding General/Chief of Field Artillery while keeping the Deputy Commanding General/Assistant Commandant (DCG/AC) informed. The Field Artillery School, with the remaining traditional schoolhouse functions, still reports to the Commandant/Chief of Field Artillery via the DCG/AC.

This article discusses how the Field Artillery School has reorganized under TRADOC's interim model--establishing doctrinal, training and combat development functions within the FDIC and the first steps of reorganizing the Field Artillery School under the 30th FA Regimental structure. The latter restructuring will facilitate the development of an FA Leader Training Center in the long term.

Futures Development Integration Center. FDIC stood up on 1 October 2001. It is responsible for the "cradle to grave" development of new and legacy organizations and systems, to include their training and doctrine developments, that impacts across the DTLOMS and BFAs. The result will be a more efficient process that captures all the requirements in a timely manner during this period of rapid transformation.

Given FDIC's charter, it understandably incorporates the combat developments of the TRADOC System Managers (TSMs) for FA Tactical Data Systems (TSM FATDS), Cannons (TSM CN) and Rocket and Missile Systems (TSM RAMS) as indicated in the figure. The FDIC also understandably incorporates the experimentation and science and technology demonstrations of the Depth and Simultaneous Attack Battle Lab and the Objective Force project office of Task Force XXI. However, the Requirements Determination Development and Integration (RDDI) and Information Technology and Production Services (IT&PS) Divisions call for further explanation.

Basically, RDDI incorporates into the FDIC the development of force structure and all non-TSM combat systems--the material for the fire support team (FIST), radars, meteorological, etc. It also integrates the FA doctrine and individual and collective training functions of WIDD into FDIC, including developing products such as training aids, devices, simulators and simulations (TADSS); unit training support packages (TSPs); mission training plans (MTPs); programs of instruction (POIs); etc. It also maintains and integrates intelligence and threat functions.

RDDI provides intensive, centralized, total systems management of the development and integration of the DTLOMS products across the affected TRADOC service schools.

One of the enhancements TRADOC is looking for in the interim model design is increased production services--thus IT&PS was created. IT&PS manages Classroom XXI and the distance learning network, develops multimedia training products for distance learning, maintains the online learning management system (LMS) and the digital library archives, and processes training products for submission to TRADOC. In addition, IT&PS trains the Field Artillery School instructors.

FDIC streamlines FA development processes using matrix-managed functions and integrates FA doctrine, training and combat developments, enabling the functions to be more flexible and effective in support of the Army's transformation and joint warfighting.

Field Artillery School and the 30th Regiment. The reorganization of the 30th FA Regiment and the FA School complements the TRADOC interim model. For many years the FA School had been organized with a separate Student Battalion and a Staff and Faculty Battalion. Since the establishment of the 30th Field Artillery Regiment in 1995, the 1st Battalion, 30th Field Artillery (1-30 FA) has been responsible for the staff and faculty of the school, and 3-30 FA has been home for thousands of students passing through Fort Sill.

Over the years, leaders have tried several initiatives to reorganize the regiment to align students with their instructors in the academic departments responsible for the students' courses of instruction--the Fire Support and Combined Arms Operations Department (FSCAOD) or the Gunnery Department. These initiatives were unsuccessful. Within TRADOC, the Armor School at Fort Knox, Kentucky, and Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia, are organized with students aligned with their instructors in the battalions of their respective "school brigades."

In March 2002, the 30th Regiment was reorganized to align a battalion of students and instructors with each department. The benefits of this move are that both battalions have students and instructors and a more balanced distribution of responsibilities. This will enhance coordination and cohesiveness as the battalions develop habitual relationships with the departments and promote the regimental battalion leaders' playing a more active role in the leader development process of the Officer Basic Course (OBC), Captains Career Course (CCC) and the Warrant Officer Basic and Advanced Courses (WOBC and WOAC).

Under the new organization, 1-30 FA is responsible for FSCAOD with its CCC students, WOBC and WOAC students, and advanced FA tactical data system (AFATDS) and initial FA automation system (IFSAS) students. Additionally, the FDIC receives its administrative and logistics support from 1-30 FA.

In a similar vein, 3-30 FA is responsible for the Gunnery Department with its OBC students. Additionally, the battalion is responsible for the International Student Division and has Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) authority over the NCO Academy.

This alignment streamlines planning, scheduling and coordination, providing a unity of command in training leaders that did not previously exist. The FDIC and 30th FA Regiment realignment will improve operations and posture the school to support the branch transformation in the coming years.

Ultimately, in the objective institutional model, the respective 30th Regiment battalion commanders may wear "dual hats"--one as the battalion commander and one as the department director. This would further streamline and integrate functions in the FA Leader Training Center.

In the interim model, the commander of the 30th FA Regiment continues to serve as Chief of Staff of the Training Command that still encompasses the FA School, NCO Academy and the FA Training Center (FATC). Eventually, he will become Director of Training in the Leader Training Center and Commander of the 30th Regiment when the departments are integrated into the regiment.

Other Changes to Training Command. Although most of the rest of Training Command remains intact-- NCO Academy and FATC--some additional changes were necessary to implement the interim model. For example, the Army training requirements and resources system (ATTRS) and academic records functions that used to be part of WIDD now fall under the G3, Training Command.

Perhaps the most significant additional change is the creation of the Quality Assurance Office (QAO). This office ensures the quality and effectiveness of FA training, a function that also used to be part of WIDD. QAO evaluates and validates training and training products, maintaining the standard. It conducts strategic analyses, evaluates performance deficiencies and ensures combat development and other requirements are integrated into training. QAO also is responsible for institutional self-evaluation and the Army school system (TASS) accreditation.

In all, the interim model redesign of the Field Artillery School streamlines the organization and uses resources more effectively. It integrates critical functions and ensures training quality and relevance to the field.

The FA School is transforming with the Army, leveraging existing structures to improve operations. With this interim institutional transformation, we are committed to producing the best soldiers and leaders, systems, organizations and doctrine for the FA branch-- and doing it better.

Colonel Michael T. Madden commands the 30th Field Artillery Regiment and is Chief of Staff of Training Command at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. In his previous assignment, he was Chief of the Plans Division in the J5 Plans and Policy Directorate and Chief of the Major Theater War Branch, among other assignments, at Central Command at MacDill AFB in Florida. He commanded the 1st Battalion, 31st Field Artillery in the Field Artillery Training Center, Fort Sill; a firing battery and headquarters and headquarters battery in the 25th Infantry Division (Light), Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; a Lance battery in the 210th Field Artillery Brigade, part of VII Corps in Germany; and the Metro Recruiting Company in Pittsburgh. He was the Executive Officer of the 1st Infantry Division (Mechanized) Artillery at Fort Riley, Kansas, having deployed as an Operations Officer with the division to the Gulf for Operations Desert Shield and Storm. Colonel Madden holds a master's degree in Management from Webster University, St. Louis, Missour i, and a master's degree in National Security Strategy from the National War College, Washington, DC.