The changing terrain: Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) releases “Losing Our Edge” report
The non-profit organization Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) released the report Losing Our Edge: Pentagon Personnel Reform and the Dangers of Inaction on Wednesday. The report makes it clear that the Department of Defense (DoD) is in dire need of consistent funding and a new personnel management system that is more appealing to potential recruits.
The report’s introduction states “Despite ongoing efforts to support military and civilian defense personnel, our nation risks failing to recruit, retain, and prepare a force adequate to meet future demands.” Report highlights:
- The total force has to be redesigned, and it must become more adaptable to a range of threats.
- The Budget Control Act (sequestration) and growth in personnel costs are squeezing DoD’s budget, forcing the Pentagon to choose “between capacity (endstrength) and capability (equipment and technology).”
- DoD’s “uncertain fiscal landscape” leads to “inefficiencies and waste.” Therefore, the BPC says DoD must have a “sufficient topline budget, consistent funding, and the flexibility to adequately budget for the necessary force to meet projected demand,” thus leading to equality between capability and capacity.
- Although force size has declined by 500,000 in the last 20 years, spending on personnel has remained at about 30 percent of DoD’s budget. The personnel reductions threaten mission readiness, yet so would cuts to equipment and modernization. The BPC says “the squeeze placed on the defense budget must be loosened,” and that “given current budget realities” without personnel reform a reduction-in-force would be necessary.
- The Pentagon’s “across-the-board approach to cuts and restructuring” will no longer work. The BPC recommends the Pentagon “identify areas of excess and reallocate those resources to areas of need.”
- BPC described the Pentagon’s personnel management system as “antiquated” and doesn’t fit into current professional expectations. Although those who want to serve their country will do so regardless of personnel issues, BPC is concerned that the differences between military and civilian cultures will prevent some from serving. The report states that some service members who stay in for more than a few years “often find that it is not conducive to long-term family relationships, or other personal and professional goals.”
- The military’s recruiting practices rely on “ineffective metrics and outdated standards,” based on projected end-strength demand and high school completion and Armed Forces Qualification Test scores. BPC suggest that these restrictions won’t identify “individual aptitude for high-demand military specialties” and that “more-effective quality metrics” could identify where recruits would be most successful in certain military specialties. More than 10 percent of recruits do not complete their first year of service, at a cost of $1 billion a year.
BPC concludes by saying “If DoD hopes to continue attracting outstanding people, it must target inefficiency and waste as a matter of critical importance to our national security.” The report also states that proposed recommendations to address these challenges will be forthcoming.
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