COMMENTARY
SERVING UP DATA
Like many foods, information needs some work before it’s ready for consumption.
by Lt. Col. Philip J. Smith
Human beings consume information for the same reason they consume food: to survive and thrive in their environments. Food is converted into muscle and energy, while information is converted into knowledge that is used to make better decisions. Better decision-making is important to survival. As pointed out in an earlier article (see “Cloud Formations” in the Winter 2023 issue of Army AL&T), humans and machines must consume information in greater quantities at a greater velocity to achieve information advantage over competitors.
Tis is important, because when decision and action outpace observation and orientation, risk occurs.
To give Army commanders decision dominance, we must make data process- ing and availability a critical capability. Te solution is not to try and squeeze more data more quickly from the Army’s existing data architecture. Te solu- tion lies in rethinking the Army’s entire data system and deciding if it can be improved or replaced, and then beginning to overhaul it.
Many organizations in the commercial sector and the Department of Defense have launched their information system overhauls by using the “as a service” models to acquire new capabilities. Tis approach lets them keep up with the accelerating speed of technological advancement while reducing resource and budget burdens, equipment obsolescence and other sustainment challenges.
To understand “as a service,” it is helpful to look at the evolution of data production and consumption. For a long time, gathering information was a “hunting and gathering” exercise similar to that of Stone Age tribes search- ing for food; it was time- and labor-intensive.
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