System of Systems Management in the Cannon Artillery Portfolio

There is an urgent need to understand how System of Systems Engineering (SoSE) theory and practice can be leveraged to enable the US Army Field Artillery to dominate in a conflict against a near peer adversary. The intent of this research is to identify opportunities for the application of System of Systems Engineering theory and practice within the US Army Cannon Artillery portfolio in support of this objective. Systems of Systems Engineering (SoSE) management addresses the development of complex systems made up of constituent “component” systems.The application of SoSE has become necessary to manage the increasingly complex systems that the Army will develop and field in the near future, as well as manage the complex systems of systems that already exist. The last significant guidance provided by DoD on system of systems engineering is in excess of ten years old. Theory and thought on System of Systems Engineering have advanced in that time. This paper seeks to examine how thought on System of Systems Engineering has progressed and identify opportunities to improve outcomes by implementing these new ideas into the development and acquisition of new capabilities for the US Army. This paper examines the applicability of SoSE to the Army cannon artillery portfolio and provides recommendations for the application of SoSE within that portfolio. In this paper, a literature search will be conducted to identify innovative thought on the management of systems of systems. Relevant themes are then drawn from the research to identify opportunities for implementation in the cannon artillery portfolio. Finally, recommendations will be made for future inquiry into this area of research. DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A: Approved for public release; distribution unlimited. (PAO Log #357-20, 16 Apr 2020) SYSTEM OF SYSTEMS IN THE CANNON ARTILLERY PORTFOLIO 6 Chapter 1 – Introduction Background There is an urgent need to understand how System of Systems Engineering (SoSE) theory and practice can be leveraged to enable the US Army Field Artillery to dominate in a conflict against a near peer adversary. The intent of this research is to identify opportunities for the application of System of Systems Engineering theory and practice within the US Army Cannon Artillery portfolio in support of this objective. Systems of Systems Engineering (SoSE) management addresses the development of complex systems made up of constituent “component” systems. SoSE management is not merely an extension of Systems Engineering principles as presently employed to manage DoD programs. But rather, Systems Engineering and System of Systems Engineering are paradoxical in their approaches. The application of SoSE has become necessary to manage the increasingly complex systems that the Army will develop and field in the near future, as well as manage the complex systems of systems that already exist. Presently SoSE is not widely practiced outside of select ACAT I DoD programs. In addition, the last significant guidance provided by DoD on system of systems engineering is in excess of ten years old. Theory and thought on System of Systems Engineering have advanced in that time. This paper seeks to examine how thought on System of Systems Engineering has progressed and identify opportunities to improve outcomes by implementing these new ideas into the development and acquisition of new capabilities for the US Army. This paper examines the applicability of SoSE to the Army cannon artillery portfolio and provides recommendations for the application of SoSE within that portfolio. DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A: Approved for public release; distribution unlimited. (PAO Log #357-20, 16 Apr 2020) SYSTEM OF SYSTEMS IN THE CANNON ARTILLERY PORTFOLIO 7 Problem Statement The general problem is that implementation of System of Systems Engineering (SoSE) to address increasingly interconnected and complex weapon systems, other than specific ACAT I programs, is not widely understood. In addition to this circumstance, the DoD guidebook on System of Systems Engineering was published in 2008 and has become a dated reference on the topic. The specific problem is that there is no established formal framework to manage SoSE for programs within the cannon artillery portfolio. Purpose of This Study The intent of this paper is to identify current thinking and practice for System of Systems Engineering implementation, investigate the role that SoSE could be playing within the cannon artillery portfolio and provide recommendations for the application of SoSE within that portfolio. In order to accomplish this aim, research in this paper will examine the advancement of system of systems engineering, with intent of identifying opportunities to implement these ideas within Army engineering processes to improve outcomes within the cannon artillery portfolio. A robust discussion of how best to manage the cannon artillery portfolio can them entered into with a new perspective. Significance of This Research The intent of this research is to develop an understanding of the benefits of applying SoSE practice and theory to a portfolio of Army systems. As the Army pursues its aggressive modernization agenda, increasingly complex materiel solutions will be required to provide the necessary capabilities to address the near peer threat posed by our nation’s potential adversaries. SoSE will be required to manage these systems of systems. The concepts examined in this paper may have application in other Army weapon portfolios, in addition to the cannon artillery DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A: Approved for public release; distribution unlimited. (PAO Log #357-20, 16 Apr 2020) SYSTEM OF SYSTEMS IN THE CANNON ARTILLERY PORTFOLIO 8 portfolio. At present, SoSE has not been formally applied to programs below the ACAT I designation. Exploring the application of SoSE to systems of systems, consisting of multiple lower ACAT systems, will provide insight into how this approach can be leveraged to obtain better outcomes in the acquisition of the cannon artillery priorities. Overview of Research Methodology The central question to be addressed in this paper is: What opportunities are there to introduce SoSE management into the cannon artillery portfolio and what benefits could be realized? Secondary or guiding questions relevant to the central question are:  What is the current thought and practice of SoSE management?  How is System of Systems Engineering Management currently practiced within the Army/ DoD? A qualitative historical research case study approach will be taken in this paper. A literature review will be undertaken to examine the answers to the secondary questions and support the response to the primary question of this research. This literature search will be conducted via the Defense Acquisition Library resources such as the ProQuest database of peer reviewed literature. The literature review will be supplemented by data from other open sources that bear on the discussion of SoSE implementation. This literature review and data analysis will then be used to evaluate the potential for application of SoSE within the cannon artillery portfolio. It is desired that the points taken from this research will fuel a robust debate of how to better implement SoSE within the cannon artillery portfolio and more widely within Army acquisition. DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A: Approved for public release; distribution unlimited. (PAO Log #357-20, 16 Apr 2020) SYSTEM OF SYSTEMS IN THE CANNON ARTILLERY PORTFOLIO 9 Limitations This paper is limited to a historical review due to the limitation on use of interviews and surveys. An institutional Review Board (IRB) does not exist at Defense Acquisition University, presently. Without IRB review and approval, human research cannot be conducted. The scope of this paper has been limited to the cannon artillery portfolio due to the limited time and resources available to conduct research in support of this paper. Further examination of other weapon portfolios would require time and resources not available within the duration of the DAU Senior Service College Fellowship. Additionally, the paper must be published under distribution statement A. This fact will limit the level of technical detail presented in order to maintain that disclosure level. Therefore, open sources and distribution ‘A’ sources will be utilized for this paper. If this paper could be published at a higher distribution level, additional technical detail and themes could be examined and discussed, providing a richer discussion of the topic. DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A: Approved for public release; distribution unlimited. (PAO Log #357-20, 16 Apr 2020) SYSTEM OF SYSTEMS IN THE CANNON ARTILLERY PORTFOLIO 10 Chapter 2 –Literature Review Introduction. The literature review for this paper is conducted by examining relevant literature that addresses the secondary questions of what the current thinking on system of systems engineering is within industry and within the DoD. References will be sought that discuss implementation of system of systems engineering within DoD, as a third segment of inquiry within the literature. The process utilized for this literature search is to conduct searches on the ProQuest database for the system of systems engineering management topic. This initial search is conducted using the key words ‘system of systems engineering’ and management. Variations on the key words are utilized to open the aperture for sources. Google searches to identify related topics for follow up within the ProQuest database are utilized as well. The intent of the search process is to generate a representative portrayal of the current thinking on system of systems engineering. A number of thought leaders, widely cited by others, on this topic are identified and focused searches to gain a broader view of their work is leveraged to gain additional insight. Thought on System of Systems Engineering Management Management of system of systems. G