Finding a New Approach to Measure the Operational Value of Intelligence for Military Operations

This Note documents the final executive-level briefing for a project whose goal was to develop and apply innovative analytic tools for quantifying the operational value of intelligence, electronic warfare/target acquisition (IEW/TA). The Note discusses the three analytic tools produced by the project: a methodology for relating commanders' requirements to collection results and two models that employ the methodology. The "static" model provides an aggregate assessment of the capability of specified systems and system packages to meet commanders' information needs in specified scenarios. The "dynamic" model is more detailed and broader in scope, assessing the impact of intelligence collection on commanders' decisionmaking over the course of an operation from initial planning to its conclusion. All three tools depend fundamentally on subjective-judgment data, but these data are systematically developed using experts in operations planning, intelligence collection and production, and analysis. The Note concludes with a discussion of the status of the three tools developed during the project and potential future directions for their use.