American officers are the bedrock of military success. They face a whirlwind of change that is picking up speed, yet their preparation is dictated by a system based on stability and predictability that, if they ever existed, certainly do not exist today. Others have identified many of the same problems and have offered some of the same solutions, explored in much greater depth than we were able to accomplish here. Yet strikingly few changes have been made. This reluctance, primarily cultural and institutional, cannot persist. Failing to adapt the officer management system to better align with the future will put U.S. officers at a growing disadvantage, placing more and more of a burden upon them as individuals to overcome a bureaucracy that ideally would be dedicated to supporting their success. The ingenuity gap is real and growing, and our officers are caught in it. DOD should immediately implement changes to officer management to close this gap.
