Fast Company Magazine Names Army Simulations Innovator to "100 Most Creative People in Business

By Maureen Roth/Joint Training Counter-IED Operations Integration CenterJune 2, 2010

Mark Covey JTCOIC
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Fort Monroe, VA Aca,!" For its June issue, Fast Company Magazine has named U.S. Army Training and Doctrine CommandAca,!a,,cs (TRADOC) Mark Covey to their list of the Aca,!A"100 Most Creative People in Business for 2010.Aca,!A? <a href="http://www.fastcompany.com/100/2010" target="_blank">http://www.fastcompany.com/100/2010</a>

Covey is the director of Systems Integration, Modeling and Simulations (SIMS) for the TRADOC and Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat OrganizationAca,!a,,cs (JIEDDO) Joint Training Counter-IED Operations Integration Center (JTCOIC). He was recognized for the JTCOICAca,!a,,cs groundbreaking efforts to apply real data from current military operations to a variety of modeling and simulation applications.

The end results, downloaded by the thousands by all U.S. Services, its coalition partners and other U.S. government agencies, are fundamentally changing whatAca,!a,,cs possible for training and education in todayAca,!a,,cs complex environment.

These 3d models, simulations and gaming scenarios give deploying forces a critical understanding of todayAca,!a,,cs rapidly changing threats in places such as Afghanistan and Iraq. For example, CoveyAca,!a,,cs team uses real data from these locations to replicate actual improvised explosive device (IED) or other significant combat events. The JTCOIC SIMS is the only Department of Defense (DoD) asset with this capability.

In addition to Covey, whoAca,!a,,cs number 43 on the list, the eclectic group of selectees on the Fast Company list are from fields of entertainment to medicine to technology to social enterprise.

A retired U.S. Army master sergeant, Covey, 49, is currently an Army civilian employee. A graduate of Excelsior College, he also holds a Master of Science Degree in Geospatial Information Systems from the University of Redlands. Before retiring from the Army, Covey served as an analyst, linguist and subject matter expert in a variety of Intelligence positions, including a tour in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Aca,!A"This is truly a team effort,Aca,!A? said Covey. Aca,!A"The skill sets and talents this group has are a perfect combination of technical expertise and innovation. In a very short time theyAca,!a,,cve set the standard for the use of modeling and simulation for training.Aca,!A?

By using technology to replicate the operational environment, the JTCOIC provides a depth and realism to training that allows users to train today on lessons learned yesterday on the battlefield. It was created by TRADOC, the architect for todayAca,!a,,cs Army and the future combat force, in partnership with the JIEDDO, its sister services and U.S. Joint Forces Command.

The modeling and simulation world has taken notice of their efforts as well. In December 2008, less than a year after it was established, the JTCOIC SIMS directorate was recognized with the GovernorAca,!a,,cs Award for Excellence and Innovation in Modeling and Simulations by the National Training and Simulations Association.

Future JTCOIC plans give even more reason for Covey to be included on this list. The next step is to make the complexities of the operational environment available in an immersive environment. Real-time motion capture technology and a near-limitless training environment will allow disparate units to co-exist in a virtual 3d environment.

Beyond immersive, the JTCOIC SIMS team is working on a massive multiplayer online game (MMOG) format that takes advantage of todayAca,!a,,cs service membersAca,!a,,c experience playing video games, such as World of Warcraft. The advantages of this type of virtual environment are numerous, including that itAca,!a,,cs tailorable and can be involve individuals or units that, while physically separated, are training in the same virtual space.

For inclusion on this list, Fast Company Magazine states, Aca,!A"There are no rules about creativity. We looked for dazzling new thinkers, rising stars, and boldface names who couldn't be ignored.Aca,!A?

Similarly, JTCOIC routinely looks outside the box to see what new ideas or technologies can be leveraged to improve training and the integration of new capabilities. It partners with other DoD organizations, and experts from industry, academia, and government agencies to create the most advanced and realistic products possible for forces preparing to deploy to combat.