Recent Publications

Starting Strong: Talent-Based Branching of Newly Commissioned U.S. Army Officers
April 1, 2016 — Authors: LTC Michael J Colarusso, LTC Kenneth G Heckel, COL David S Lyle, LTC William L SkimmyhornBecause the U.S. military's long-held advantage in physical capital and equipment is waning, cutting-edge human capital management is more critical than ever before. The authors of "Starting Strong" argue that by gathering detailed information on the... MORE

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The Future Security Environment: Why the U.S. Army Must Differentiate and Grow Millennial Officer Talent
September 9, 2015 — Author: COL Michael J ArnoldView the Executive Summary The dynamic nature of the future security environment necessitates better retention of diversified talent among officers from the Millennial Generational Cohort. Although the U.S. Army has done well to attract a diverse and talented group of junior officers at commissioning, a revision of the... MORE

A History of the U.S. Army Officer Corps, 1900-1990
September 1, 2014 — Author: Dr Arthur T Coumbe View the Executive SummaryThe present volume was written as a supplement to series of monographs authored by Casey Wardynski, David Lyle, and Mike Colarusso of the Army’s Office of Economic and Manpower Analysis and published by the Strategic Studies Institute of the U.S. Army War College from 2009 to 2010. In those... MORE

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Enter the Era of Persistent Competition for Talent
July 1, 2010 — Author: COL Carolyn F Kleiner Each month a member of the SSI faculty writes an editorial for our monthly newsletter. This is the Op-Ed for the July 2010 newsletter.Read Now MORE

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Towards a U.S. Army Officer Corps Strategy for Success: Employing Talent
May 1, 2010 — Authors: LTC Michael J Colarusso, COL David S Lyle, COL Casey Wardynski Efficient talent employment is at the core of the Army Officer Human Capital Model. However, the Army’s current employment paradigm is unequal to the needs of a professional, volunteer Army facing the twin challenges of a competitive labor market and an increasingly complex... MORE

Accessing Talent: The Foundation of a U.S. Army Officer Corps Strategy
February 1, 2010 — Authors: LTC Michael J Colarusso, COL David S Lyle, COL Casey Wardynski Accessing Talent: The Foundation of a U.S. Army Officer Corps Strategy, is the fourth of six monographs focused upon officer talent management in the U.S. Army. In it, the authors continue their examination of how the U.S. Army accesses, develops, retains, and employs officer... MORE

Towards a U.S. Army Officer Corps Strategy for Success: Retaining Talent
January 1, 2010 — Authors: LTC Michael J Colarusso, COL David S Lyle, COL Casey Wardynski Over the last 3 decades, dramatic labor market changes and well-intentioned but uninformed policies have created significant officer talent flight. Poor retention engenders substantial risk for the Army as it directly affects accessions, development, and employment of talent... MORE

Talent: Implications for a U.S. Army Officer Corps Strategy
November 1, 2009 — Authors: LTC Michael J Colarusso, COL David S Lyle, COL Casey Wardynski In our proposed Army Officer Corps Strategy, we established the interdependency of accessing, developing, retaining and employing talented leaders. Before exploring each of those functions in greater detail, however, we must first define “talent.” In our view, talent is... MORE

Towards a U.S. Army Officer Corps Strategy for Success: A Proposed Human Capital Model Focused upon Talent
April 1, 2009 — Author: LTC Michael J Colarusso, COL David S Lyle, COL Casey Wardynski Creating and maintaining a highly competent U.S. Army Officer Corps has always been the cornerstone of the nation's defense. The authors consider America’s continuing commitment to an all-volunteer military, its global engagement in an era of persistent conflict, and evolving... MORE