Date of Award

3-21-2013

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Engineering Management

Department

Department of Systems Engineering and Management

First Advisor

Tay Johannes, PhD.

Abstract

Expeditionary Air Force Civil Engineer support to recent operations in southwest Asia created a unique organizational learning environment, particularly related supporting the general engineering requirements of geographically separated units in a manpower-constrained contingency environment. One of the direct results of this organizational learning was the hub-and-spoke expeditionary engineer unit featuring elements of both RED HORSE and Prime BEEF capabilities operating with theater-wide visibility of infrastructure requirements. This study acquired insights from literature and a purposeful sample of subject matter experts about operational advantages this hub-and-spoke unit offered compared to those offered by strictly legacy organizational models. The research used a Delphi method of expert opinion elicitation to which of these may be applicable in future contingency environments with caveats, constraints, and conditions that CE force planners should consider for hub-and-spoke organizations. The expert panel demonstrated consensus on 20 advantages and associated success factors, including resource cross-leveling flexibility, optimized organizational proximity to key support functions like logistics and contracting, centralized engineering functions, and better-defined command relationships in Joint environments.

AFIT Designator

AFIT-ENV-13-M-09

DTIC Accession Number

ADA583624

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