COMMENTARY
HIGH LEVEL CONTACT
Kristjan Prikk, right, Estonian ambassador to the United States, meets with U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Timothy Gowen, the adjutant general for the Maryland National Guard, in Baltimore, Maryland, in May 2021. (Photo by Tech Sgt. Enjoli Saunders, Maryland National Guard)
would be uniquely advantageous for a Guard-run Innovation Program.
Te duality of the National Guard’s mission results in a federal military force working at the direction of local state authority. For small-scale innovators, state Guards can provide access to the DOD system that would otherwise be out of reach. National Guard units use the same equipment as their active-duty coun- terparts, go to the same schools for training, operate bases that have the same requirements and function in a manner that is practically identical to active units. What this means for small- scale innovators with solutions to DOD-wide problems is that state National Guards become a much more accessible outlet for partnering than the federal military. Te innovation officer could become the conduit through which local business can interact with the military at the state level, saving the hassle of navigat- ing the larger DOD system (i.e., federal), at least initially. Te military needs a mechanism to facilitate this link and the Inno- vation Program would be an impactful solution.
MODEL INNOVATION PROGRAM Te following model illustrates what a proposed National Guard Innovation Program would look like. Each state would have an innovation officer who functions in a capacity similar to the current State Partnership Program directors. Instead of facilitating relationships with an external, foreign partner, the innovation offi- cer focuses on building relationships with local industry partners. Tey manage the program and work directly with senior Guard leadership at the state level for guidance and advocacy while the National Guard Bureau would provide policy and guidance for the program as they do for the State Partnership Program.
Te innovation officer would be a new, full-time billet operating under Title 32 (i.e., federally funded, controlled by state) author- ity just like other National Guard “full timers” at the state level. Teir primary duties would include liaising with local industry, educating business on the new innovation-focused opportuni- ties, and facilitating access to the National Guard’s Innovation Program initiative. Tey also would be responsible for overseeing
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