The second biennial Block Assessment of Joint Training is being conducted April-October 2007. This year's effort expanded to include all Combatant Commands and the four Military Services, as well as the three pillars of Training Transformation (T2) included in the 2005 Block Assessment - Joint Knowledge Development and Distribution Capability, Joint National Training Capability, and Joint Assessment and Enabling Capability (JAEC). This paper will primarily discuss metric development, identifying and refining data elements to support the metrics, and analysis of the data in support of the 2007 assessment.
The JAEC assessments are guided by the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR), T2 Strategic Plan, and T2 program missions and objectives. From these, the team developed the metrics and data elements that provided a large portion of the material for analysis. As in the previous block assessment, much of the information required the use of qualitative assessments and other means to provide a true picture of Joint training and support the purpose of the block assessment.
The paper will describe the project's attempts to go beyond completing an assessment, towards a goal of institutionalizing data gathering and assessment in the Joint Training Information Management System to support decision-making and joint force readiness. The paper also includes discussion of plans to use the Department's automated reporting systems and our efforts at synchronizing the developing data collection activities of different organizations.