NEW CUMBERLAND, Pa. – The U.S. Army Security Assistance Command provided an organizational update to Lt. Gen. Chris Mohan, Army Materiel Command’s deputy commanding general and acting commander, July 9. It was his first visit to USASAC’s New Cumberland, Pennsylvania, office, and he was accompanied by Dr. Chris Hill, director of AMC Analysis Group.
In his opening comments, Mohan said he was looking forward to the briefing and discussing the “significant issues that face our country and the Security Assistance Enterprise, because countries who want our equipment become our allies, and they become closer allies, but they also have options.”
He said America’s enemies and competitors are producing military materiel and fully engaged in the global market, “so now more than ever we have to streamline and accelerate our delivery process."
“I’m interested in learning more about this, and since it all starts with people, I’d like to begin by recognizing some of our great teammates,” said Mohan before highlighting eight USASAC employees for outstanding performance and dedication.
USASAC Commanding General Brig. Gen. Allen Pepper and Command Sgt. Maj. Michael Cordery were joined by directorate leaders who kicked off the briefing by delivering insight into command priorities, challenges and ongoing efforts.
Each regional operations director (RO) gave a brief overview of their Foreign Military Sales portfolio, highlighting their top cases for each geographic combatant command.
Security Assistance Operations Fusion Center Director Marv Whitaker gave an update on the Adaptive Case Management pilot program, which aims to create efficiencies and accelerate FMS processes.
Aaron Ford, Information Management, G2/6 director, discussed the need for advanced automation and artificial intelligence within the FMS process and initiatives USASAC has implemented.
Examples include working with personnel to discover where automation is needed in the FMS lifecycle and educating the workforce on how to effectively use AI. This included launching an AI 101 course, “lunch and learn” sessions, and future “Tech Talks.”
Ford demonstrated a Power Automate use-case scenario that turned a two-hour long manual reporting process into a five- minute “click of a button,” but also emphasized the Army-wide challenges of maximum AI implementation, like cost and cyber security issues.
“This is a prime example of how we can make ourselves better,” said Mohan, understanding the importance of modernizing and using automation and AI to remain the partner of choice for FMS in increasingly competitive times. “We have to change the way we think. It has to be part of what we do.”
Continuing with the theme of workforce optimization, Dave Nicola, director of the Security Assistance Support Directorate, outlined the new coordinated training program set to launch next week. The SASD-developed training is specific to job functions at the USASAC level, as opposed to broader scope training currently available to the entire Army Security Assistance Enterprise. It will provide detailed instruction for job functions at each grade level and focus on standardization across all RO directorates, ensuring USASAC personnel are trained and able to assist partner nations across all RO directorates as the need arises.
Lastly, G8 Resource Management Division Chief Wendy Zimmerman gave an overview of the current funding status and the command’s budget and hiring challenges.
Following the briefing, Mohan visited the Security Assistance Liaison Officers and spoke with SALO program manager Terra Good to learn more about their roles at USASAC and how the program is expanding.
Mohan expressed gratitude toward the SALOs and USASAC personnel for their commitment to the FMS mission and encouraged them to continue improving the process.
“Thank you for all you do. This is hard work,” said Mohan. “What I think about as a traditional line officer who has been on the receiving end of watching the FMS enterprise, is
we have to drive systems together. In the future, we have to work harder with our counterparts and (stakeholders) to link in what they are trying to accomplish with the speed that we need to generate, because countries have other options, and we must be very cognizant of that.”
“We have to question everything” he admonished. “We have to automate our processes. We’ve got to get better, and we’ve got to get faster. And we have to be able to illuminate where we have roadblocks.”
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