March 20, 2007
The Quadrennial Defense Review: A Model for the Quadrennial Homeland Security Review
Although the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security are different in many ways, they do share some common challenges – challenges that underscore the need for and importance of priority setting and strategic planning. Both departments are:
- Charged with missions that are vital to the health and welfare of the nation --protecting the American people and our way of life is a mission in which we cannot fail;
- Facing persistent and resourceful enemies;
- Large, complex bureaucracies comprised of a number of diverse and (in some cases, previously independent) organizations with their own cultures, traditions, and ways of doing business);
- Responsible for spending billions of taxpayer dollars as efficiently and effectively as possible;
- Perennially in the position of having more programs to pay for than budget; and
- Trying to balance near-term demands against long-term investments.
These challenges make it that much more important for each department to have a unifying vision, a strategy for achieving its objectives, and a clear set of priorities to guide resource allocation and risk management. It is difficult, if not impossible, to create these absent an effective strategic planning process. And a quadrennial review conducted at the outset of a new administration can be a critical first step in that process.
More from CNAS
-
Two Cheers for Esper’s Plan to Reassert Civilian Control of the Pentagon
Commentary
The longest-ever gap in civilian leadership atop the Department of Defense came to an end on July 23, when Mark Esper was sworn in as secretary of defense. His presence in the...
By Loren DeJonge Schulman, Alice Hunt Friend & Mara Karlin
-
CNAS experts break down Trump's new National Security Strategy
Podcast
CNAS Deputy Director of Studies dives into the Trump administration's National Security Strategy, talking strategy development, messaging, and implementation with CNAS experts...
By Loren DeJonge Schulman, Jerry Hendrix, Ilan Goldenberg & Daniel Kliman
-
Shaping U.S. Policy on Islamic State Amid Shifting Politics
An ABC News-Washington Post poll conducted after the Nov. 13 Paris attacks found that 73% of Americans support increased airstrikes against Islamic State and 60% favor increas...
By Richard Fontaine
-
Introducing Agenda SecDef
One year from now, somewhere in a small suite of offices at the Pentagon, a team of civil servants, military officers, and a smattering of outside civilians will be hard at wo...
By Loren DeJonge Schulman & Shawn Brimley
