Event Overview:

Recommendations for Strengthening the National Security Workforce: A Tri-Commission Event

When:

Wednesday 17 June 2020 at 10:00 - 11:30 am EST.

Where:

Online. RSVP here

Description: 

U.S. national security relies on people just as much as policy or technology.

In response to the growing challenge of building a strong, skilled national security workforce, three national commissions have come together to raise the issue before Congress. On June 17, the National Defense University hosted a virtual two-panel discussion to explore the challenges and the recommendations proposed by the National Commission on Military, National, and Public Service (NCMNPS), the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI), and the U.S. Cyberspace Solarium Commission (CSC).

Panel One: Hiring in the Federal Government

Policies that govern hiring in the federal government must strike a balance between important priorities like fairness and flexibility or security and speed. In competitive hiring markets like artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, finding this balance is especially difficult. In this session, representatives from the three commissions discussed hiring authorities, security clearance processes, and other key issues that shape how the government brings talented individuals into public service positions.

Panel Two: Strengthening Pathways into Federal Jobs

The U.S. government has established a number of tools to help bring talented individuals into government jobs. Programs like CyberCorps: Scholarship for Service and the Pathways Internships have a strong track record of success, and can be expanded and improved to help address critical workforce needs. This session explored opportunities like these to expand and strengthen these types of tools for federal hiring

Commissions:

The National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI) was established in the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 "to consider the methods and means necessary to advance the development of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and associated technologies to comprehensively address the national security and defense needs of the United States.”

The National Commission on Military, National, and Public Service (NCMNPS) is a bipartisan 11-member commission charged for the first time in American history with conducting comprehensive and holistic review of all forms of service to the Nation and the Selective Service System. After two and a half years of extensive research, public hearings, and conversations with Americans across the country, the Commission released its final report, Inspired to Serve, to the Congress, the President, and the American public on March 25, 2020.

The U.S. Cyberspace Solarium Commission (CSC) is a bipartisan, intergovernmental body created by the John S.McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 to develop a strategic approach to defending the United States in cyberspace against cyberattacks of significant consequence.

Coverage:

Various news outlets wrote about this event including the Wall Street Journal. The video of the event can be viewed here.