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Military Professions

For decades, RAND has conducted extensive research to help U.S. and allied decisionmakers design training and career development programs that will attract and retain military professionals capable of meeting a nation's national security and defense goals.

Report
Attracting and Retaining Enlisted and Civilian Personnel to Build the Best Cyber Workforce
In addition to revamping the training of its offensive and defensive cyber operators, the U.S. Air Force has also sought to better understand some of the drivers of attraction to and retention in the cyber field. What could the Air Force do to attract and retain the best personnel?
Sep 29, 2021
Report
Championing the Agile Air Force Officer Career
Some human resource management practices might hinder the military services' abilities to effectively manage their human capital. What is the potential utility of some new flexibilities for improving the management of Air Force human capital?
Jul 30, 2021
Report
Department of the Air Force Officer Talent Management Reforms
The Department of the Air Force is revamping the way it manages officer development and promotion. As part of this overhaul, the Line of the Air Force is being split into six separate developmental categories. How will interdependent policy changes affect outcomes of the personnel system?
Jul 27, 2021
Report
Making the Grade: Integration of Joint Professional Military Education and Talent Management in Developing Joint Officers
The authors examine how joint educational institutions and stakeholders and the military services can support a transition to joint professional military education using the outcomes expected of graduates rather than traditional learning processes.
May 26, 2021
Report
Increasing Aircrew Flight Equipment Personnel Proficiency: Insights from Members of the Career Field
The Air Force Aircrew Flight Equipment (AFE) specialty plays a crucial role in ensuring the safety of airmen. The authors investigate causes for the decline in AFE proficiency and develop courses of action to mitigate the issue.
Mar 17, 2021
Research Brief
Modernizing Officer Career Management: Analyzing Eleven Issues
The authors examine 11 issues related to modernizing officer career management; these involve statutory, policy, cultural, and fiscal constraints. They offer service perspectives on these constraints and present mitigation strategies.
Jan 19, 2021
Research Brief
"Muddling Through": The Revolutionary Potential of Evolutionary Officer Management Reform
The authors examine why the services embraced the fiscal year 2019 National Defense Authorization Act reforms after rejecting the Force of the Future reforms.
Jan 19, 2021
Report
Officer Career Management: Additional Steps Toward Modernization
The authors identify useful steps toward modernization of officer career management in the military, examine constraints on reforms, and propose mitigating strategies and ways forward.
Jan 19, 2021
Report
Cost-Benefit Analysis of Special and Incentive Pays for Career Enlisted Aviators
The authors develop a capability to calculate the efficient amount of special and incentive pays for Air Force career enlisted aviators (CEAs). They also estimate the trade-offs between retaining CEAs and increasing accessions for a given force size.
Jan 7, 2021
Dissertation
Attracting the Right Volunteers: U.S. Army Functional Areas and the Voluntary Transfer Incentive Program
Explores how the United States Army has adapted to the Voluntary Transfer Incentive Program, which allows mid-career Army officers to volunteer to switch specialties to a functional area.
Sep 23, 2020
Report
U.S. Military Approaches to Leadership Vary Among Services
Emerging global security challenges might require different military leadership approaches and perspectives. How do the services currently develop leaders? And how do each service's personnel practices and culture influence how general and flag officers lead, manage, and advise?
Aug 10, 2020
Report
Modeling Career Enlisted Aviator Retention in the U.S. Air Force
The career trajectories and retention profiles of certain U.S. Air Force career enlisted aviators (CEAs) vary across the different Air Force Specialty Codes. Is there a model that would estimate CEA retention?
Aug 5, 2020
Report
Strengthening Total Force Culture and Facilitating Cross-Component Integration in the U.S. Military
While all U.S. military services have strived to achieve greater total force integration and a stronger total force culture across their active and reserve components, significant impediments limit the achievement of these objectives. What policies can foster cross-component integration?
May 28, 2020
News Release
New Space Force Will Need Resources, Clear Definition of Warfighting Mission
To meet the goals of the U.S. Space Force most space activities in the Department of Defense should be moved into the new service. Moreover, it will be critical that the Space Force clearly define and clarify its space warfighting mission.
Mar 13, 2020
Research Brief
How to Build an Effective, Efficient, and Independent Space Force
To increase its likelihood of developing into a successful organization, the new U.S. Space Force should define and clarify its space warfighting missions. And most space activities in the Department of Defense should be moved into the new service.
Mar 13, 2020
Report
A Separate Space: Creating a Military Service for Space
As the United States creates the Space Force as a service within the Department of the Air Force, RAND assessed which units to bring into the Space Force, analyzed career field sustainability and drew lessons from other defense organizations.
Mar 13, 2020
Report
Reducing the Time Burdens of Army Company Leaders
U.S. Army company leaders have long been recognized as overworked. This report is intended to help the Army identify ways to reduce and manage the time burdens on Active Component company leaders in garrison by examining these leaders' time burdens.
Dec 18, 2019
Report
Army Expeditionary Civilian Demand: Forecasting Future Requirements for Civilian Deployments
As the largest provider of government civilians to support U.S. military operations, the Army stands to benefit to a great extent from a more robust process for forecasting future demand for its civilian workforce.
Oct 24, 2019
Report
Projecting Air Force Rated Officer Inventory Across the Total Force: Total Force Blue Line Model for Rated Officer Management
Managing the flow of Air Force rated officers has become more challenging. In this report, the authors document their efforts to develop a long-term career field planning model for all rated officers across the Total Force.
Sep 4, 2019
Report
Balancing Quality of Life with Mission Requirements: An Analysis of Personnel Tempo on U.S. Coast Guard Major Cutters
The authors analyze how U.S. Coast Guard servicemembers serving on major cutters respond to various levels of personnel tempo, as well as the effects of working conditions on these responses.
Jul 29, 2019

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Research conducted by

Researcher Spotlight

Henry A. Leonard

Senior International/Defense Researcher

Henry "Chip" Leonard is a senior international/defense researcher at the RAND Corporation who served for more than 27 years as an Army officer; half of that time was with tactical units, including seven years of direct command experience. In addition, he served in key operational staff positions…
Chaitra M. Hardison

Senior Behavioral Scientist

Chaitra M. Hardison (she/her) is a senior behavioral scientist at the RAND Corporation and a member of the Pardee RAND Graduate School faculty. Her research focuses on the knowledge, skills, and abilities required in the workplace and identifying how best to select, train, and educate personnel…

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