Vanguard Magazine

26 DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021 www.vanguardcanada.com c4isr 'Ladder A' migration; however, directly af- ter collection, the data exists without be- ing understood, thus an inadvertent mi- gration to Box #3. The point of PED is to turn this collected data into meaning as it relates to a collection requirement (CR), and then transfer it to an All-Source Ana- lyst who is able to provide contextual rel- evance, bringing the process home to Box #1. Why the recent redirection of assets to developing PED expertise and the re- lated networks? Because the organization spends time and treasure to collect answers to our questions, all of which is wasted un- less those answers make it to Box #1. Put another way, collection without PED and the enabling C4ISR storage and transmis- sion infrastructure is largely a waste of time and resources. Transitioning out of Box #4 is slightly more complicated, in that there is no di- rect logical path to Box #1, and instead, the requirement must transit through Box #2 or Box #3 prior to being resolved. With this in mind, 'Ladder C' implies that a re- newed analytic effort has been undertaken that has revealed a blind spot in our un- derstanding, so we start to contemplate previously unconsidered questions, with the intent to move the collected answers to 'Ladder A.' 'Ladder D', by comparison, implies that we have come into possession of some new source of information that is either unfindable, unprocessed (denot- ing a lack of PED capacity) or that we lack adequate analysis to integrate the informa- tion into our overall understanding of the subject; ideally, a 'Ladder D' event is fol- lowed by a 'Ladder B' event, but as the information is an unknown, unexploited resource, it persists as a potential liability until discovered. Snakes Having spent some time describing the ladders, understanding their inverse corol- lary, the snakes, is equally worthwhile, par- ticularly if we intend to prevent them from breeding (I prefer my metaphors shaken, not stirred). 'Snake E' suggests that a collection capa- bility or source of information has ceased to be accessible, so our knowledge has been overtaken by events. 'Snake F' sug- gests that we retain information on the subject, but that it has been misplaced, ei- ther due to the loss of a network (read: the collapse of the relevant C4ISR infrastruc- ture), a loss of analytic or technical ability to operationalize the information, or the degradation of storage, search, or databas- ing functions. 'Snake G' implies a com- plete loss of situational awareness, such as during personnel transitions, mandate changes, loss of manpower, or reallocation of scarce capacity against myriad priorities. The snakes have pet names like "network collapse," "losing the bubble," or in the worst cases, "Out to Lunch." Much like the board game, snakes mean the Com- mander is losing whatever competitive decision-making process he is engaged in. So what? First off, identify and kill the snakes. If you can't do that, figure out the least painful snake to be bitten by. Ladders are hard to build, so if possible, take the snakebite without feeling the need to destroy a lad- der to mitigate the pain. Second, make sure the effort goes into building the right ladders. Put another way, prioritize what matters most, facilitate the programs that actually answer relevant questions, and don't forget to foster the C4ISR capabilities from which your ladder will likely be built. Third, there are those who build and maintain barricades to ladder-builders; they are not snakes per se, but they are in the reptile family. I believe in the sov- ereignty of Commanders to execute gov- ernment policy. If properly enabled, they enjoy relative impunity to slay snakes and build ladders at will. If I am loyal to my Commander, I will cry bloody murder on the first sighting of a reptile, perhaps help- ing the lizard to become part of the lad- der building team if I can. Otherwise, the Commander's sovereignty is obstructed one tiny defensive barricade at a time by those "cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." For the record, that last quote is from the 1910 Man in the Arena speech and can be positively attributed to U.S. Presi- dent Theodore Roosevelt. I don't think he meant it to be about ladder builders, but reading it in the morning helps me to be- lieve that I can. Capt p. Scotty Marshall serves in the Canadian Armed Forces at CANSOFCOM. Information Findability We have the information We don't have the information We can find the information We can't find the information "We know we know" "We know we don't know" "We don't know we don't know" "We don't know we know" 1 2 3 4 E F G First off, identify and kill the snakes. If you can't do that, figure out the least painful snake to be bitten by. Ladders are hard to build, so if pos- sible, take the snakebite without feeling the need to destroy a ladder to mitigate the pain.

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