Decision Advantage

Stuart is a career Army officer with over 25+ years of distinguished service, blending deep expertise in logistics, sustainment, and strategic planning. Most recently, he commanded the Army Field Support Battalion – Charleston (AFSBn-CHS), home of the Army’s Prepositioned Stocks (APS-3) program, where he led a 600-person organization responsible for maintaining and deploying combat power positioned aboard ships worldwide. His career has spanned tactical, operational, and strategic levels. Stuart has commanded at company and battalion levels, deployed multiple times to Iraq, Korea, and Europe, and served in elite assignments including Regimental S4 for the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) and SAMS planner for the XVIII Airborne Corps. He holds master’s degrees in business administration, Military Arts and Science, and Military Operations, and is a graduate of the School of Advanced Military Studies.#decisionadvantage #decisiondominance02:18 - Stuart introduction07:17 - School of Advanced Military Studies overview11:14 - Why sustainment is such a critical, but overlooked component of Army operations16:41 - How is the role of the logistician evolving in an era of contested logistics21:41 - Why should people pay attention to sustainment at the tactical edge, not just headquarters?26:20 - AI-enabled sustainment at the tactical edge29:56 - How Stuart defines "AI" for defense32:45 - Where sustainment is going in the next 5-10 years36:00 - Great books for sustainment37:10 - Superbowl prediction!Referenced in the show-https://www.amazon.com/Logistics-Falklands-War-Expeditionary-Warfare/dp/1473899044-https://www.amazon.com/Engineers-Victory-Problem-Solvers-Turned/dp/0812979397-https://armyuniversity.edu/cgsc/sams/sams

Colonel Kent Park has served in the U.S. Army as an Infantry officer for over 25 years. Most recently, he was the Joint Base Commander of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, leading one of the Army’s largest and most complex installations. During his career, Park commanded at every level and deployed multiple times to Iraq and Afghanistan in support of combat operations. Park served in key strategic assignments, including U.S. Army Pacific and Combined Forces Command, Republic of Korea, where he advanced U.S.–ROK military cooperation and combined defense planning.A graduate of West Point, the U.S. Army War College, and Harvard Kennedy School, Colonel Park has shaped Army modernization, installation management, and international security policy. His leadership has spanned combat operations, strategic planning, and institutional reform, reflecting a career dedicated to national defense and the profession of arms.00:12 – Introduction01:10 – The next major war02:35 – The paradox of combined operations: combined, fast, precise04:06 – Why segregating different national armies into separate areas doesn't work04:27 – Interoperability challenges as the root cause of failure of combined operations; types of interoperability07:20 – Examples of cultural interoperability08:53 – Solutions for interoperability challenges13:36 – Crisis action SOP17:50 – What's needed at the tactical echelon to help with cultural interoperabilityReferenced in the episode:-https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45319/the-charge-of-the-light-brigade-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Balaclava

Serk Kazar is Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer of Exia Labs.00:12 Decision advantage definition01:43 What technology is required to generate feasible courses of action02:43 Spatial awareness proof of conceptReferenced in this episode:https://arxiv.org/abs/2211.08545https://mapeval.github.io/

Brian L. Steed is a retired US Army lieutenant colonel with more than thirty two years of civilian and uniformed experience in artillery, armor, cavalry (reconnaissance and security), international engagement, and professional military education. He is a practitioner, student, and writer of military theory, Middle East culture, and history.The views expressed are those of the speaker and do not reflect the official policy or position of the U.S. Army, the U.S. Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government.00:22: Brian introduction01:33: 9/11 story05:23: Foreign area officer, Middle East experience09:30: Debating the center of gravity for ISIS10:45: Big ideas of Narrative War13:40: Narrative space as a geological metaphor: space, terrain, landscape, shape16:33: Narrative War well20:13: Narrative War is how our opponents fight21:20: The narrative environment: transient, enduring, societal25:25: Narrative entrepreneur, governments, and political campaigns27:55: Explaining how the Taliban navigated the Afghan societal narrative31:26: TikTok as a mechanism to make Americans hate and fight each other31:53: All war issues are domestic33:39: Currencies of Narrative war36:60: Proactive story vs. counter-narrative37:53: Operations orders as stories41:04: Rules of Social Conflict44:26: Consolidation of gains46:52: Narrative Space Terrain51:20: Narrative strategy: Domestic, Expeditionary, Third Party, Great Power54:05: Narrative strategy during IPOE and Mission Analysis59:00: Brian's contact informationReferenced in this episode:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tip_O%27Neillhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Mosul_(2016%E2%80%932017)https://www.newsweek.com/gavin-newsom-breaks-through-trolling-trump-his-own-meme-game-2114281https://ndupress.ndu.edu/Media/News/Article/607722/three-approaches-to-center-of-gravity-analysis-the-islamic-state-of-iraq-and-th/https://www.understandingwar.org/jaysh-al-mahdihttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fX_NZtMDd3A

0:16 John's background1:00 Framework for decision dominance3:26 Understand: Carl von Clausewitz, not taking shortcuts on mission analysis5:17 Visualize: George C. Marshall's canal-side vision for the Meuse-Argonne Offensive7:40 Direct: Noncombatant Evacuation Operations planning in Sudan8:16 Assess: Spotting HIMARS flaw through dataReferenced in this episode: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/03/29/world/europe/us-ukraine-military-war-wiesbaden.htmlhttps://blog.exialabs.com/p/exia-welcomes-john-herrman-jay-miselihttps://www.thehistoryreader.com/military-history/marshall-mitchell-meuse-argonne/

Colonel Craig Broyles is the Commander of the 81st Stryker Brigade Combat Team.01:40 Worshiping the MDMP process04:32 Origins of the word "Decide"05:30 John Boyd's OODA Loop06:50 Focusing on what's worked in the past07:40 Understanding that the context will evolve08:10 METT-TC / S13:28 Deep dive on terrain analysis17:08 Adjusting the plan when the environment changes19:05 Intelligence Preparation of the Operational Environment21:20 Planning the mission from the opponent's point of view26:20 Commander's intentReferenced in this episode:https://www.etymonline.com/word/decidehttps://www.usmcu.edu/Outreach/Marine-Corps-University-Press/MCU-Journal/JAMS-vol-14-no-1/Colonel-John-Boyds-Thoughts-on-Disruption/https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Journals/Military-Review/English-Edition-Archives/May-June-2023/Furthering-the-Discussion/

Colonel Kent Park has served in the U.S. Army as an Infantry officer for over 25 years. Most recently, he was the Joint Base Commander of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, leading one of the Army’s largest and most complex installations. During his career, Park commanded at every level and deployed multiple times to Iraq and Afghanistan in support of combat operations. Park served in key strategic assignments, including U.S. Army Pacific and Combined Forces Command, Republic of Korea, where he advanced U.S.–ROK military cooperation and combined defense planning.A graduate of West Point, the U.S. Army War College, and Harvard Kennedy School, Colonel Park has shaped Army modernization, installation management, and international security policy. His leadership has spanned combat operations, strategic planning, and institutional reform, reflecting a career dedicated to national defense and the profession of arms.00:00 – Personal Experience in Mosul, Iraq01:28 – Introduction02:12 – Part 1: Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink02:46 – The Getty Kouros04:12 – John Gottman’s Marriage Prediction Studies05:39 – Case Study: Mr. Amadou Diallo Shooting06:58 – NCT Scenario Example11:15 – The Limits of Human Cognition11:33 – Insights from The User Illusion by Tor Nørretranders12:55 – Thin Slicing and Summary of Blink15:25 – The 10,000-Hour Rule from Outliers18:52 – Introduction to AI in Military Contexts20:11 – Project Maven Overview20:28 – Palantir’s Role in Military Intelligence21:56 – Exia Labs: Project Blue22:24 – AlphaGo, Move 37, and Military Applications24:46 – Centaur Chess – Human-AI Collaboration26:31 – Adversaries and AI27:57 – Exponential Progress & Future of Military Operations29:42 – Tactical Recommendations for Modern Leaders35:12 – ClosingReferenced in this episode:Malcom Gladwell's Blink: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blink:_The_Power_of_Thinking_Without_ThinkingThe Getty's Kouros: https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/103VNPGottman Institute Marriage and Couples Research: https://www.gottman.com/about/research/couples/Case of Mr. Amadou Diallo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing_of_Amadou_DialloThe User Illusion by Tor Nørretranders: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/106732.The_User_Illusionhttps://deepmind.google/research/projects/alphago/Malcom Gladwell's Outliers https://www.amazon.com/Outliers-Story-Success-Malcolm-Gladwell/dp/0316017930Project Maven https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Maven

Jay Miseli is a retired US Army officer and proven executive leader, founder, and innovator with 30 years of experience delivering results in military organizations and industry. Jay is Co-Founder of Red Thread X and has led Sales and Business Development for a $50M technology firm as a Senior Vice President.His military career spanned a broad range of responsibilities including large unit command, executive-level plans and operations, multinational and cross-agency coordination, US Army combat vehicle modernization, human resource and program management, and budget programming and execution. Jay continues to support strategic wargaming and analysis as a highly qualified expert for Army Futures Command.Jay attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, where he completed a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. Jay holds a master’s degree in operations research from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and he earned the academic title of Assistant Professor of Mathematics as course director for the advanced mathematics program at West Point.Jay lives and works in the greater Austin area where he can enjoy the many opportunities to mountain bike, hike, and be outdoors and working in the burgeoning tech and defense innovation sectors.00:05 - Intro00:34 - Controlling transitions02:51 - Force the enemy's transitions04:57 - Enemy SITTEMP07:03 - Key Terrain07:52 - Gettysburg08:57 - When/where to dismount?15:30 - COP - digital and analog16:11 - Digital Fires and PTT Command Nets18:49 - Graphic control measures and boundaries / FSCMs23:13 - METT - TC variables and forms of contact25:25 - Tracking and reporting Enemy BDAReferenced in the episode:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gettysburg,_third_day_cavalry_battles

Jay Miseli is a retired US Army officer and proven executive leader, founder, and innovator with 30 years of experience delivering results in military organizations and industry. Jay is Co-Founder of Red Thread X and has led Sales and Business Development for a $50M technology firm as a Senior Vice President.His military career spanned a broad range of responsibilities including large unit command, executive-level plans and operations, multinational and cross-agency coordination, US Army combat vehicle modernization, human resource and program management, and budget programming and execution. Jay continues to support strategic wargaming and analysis as a highly qualified expert for Army Futures Command.Jay attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, where he completed a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. Jay holds a master’s degree in operations research from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and he earned the academic title of Assistant Professor of Mathematics as course director for the advanced mathematics program at West Point.Jay lives and works in the greater Austin area where he can enjoy the many opportunities to mountain bike, hike, and be outdoors and working in the burgeoning tech and defense innovation sectors.00:05 Background00:38 War of Words in the Kinetic Activity in North Korea00:52 BCT vs. BN Fight02:21 Bicycle Wheels03:17 Maneuver Theories Intro04:05 Move Strike Protect04:06 JFC Fuller 06:32 Interior and Exterior Lines06:52 Battle of LC X-Ray07:40 Battle of Little Bighorn08:10 Surfaces and Gaps10:27 Maneuver Based Fires vs Fire Based Maneuver11:24 Pacific Theater12:05 World War II European Theater13:20 ISD Methodology17:32 Expanding Torrent Model18:58 Boyd Cycle / OODA LoopReferenced in the episode:https://www.americanprogress.org/article/north-korea-and-the-war-of-words/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._F._C._Fullerhttps://lzxray.com/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Little_Bighornhttps://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/pacific-strategy-1941-1944https://www.nationalww2museum.org/sites/default/files/styles/wide_large/public/2017-07/Pacific%20Strategy%20Map.jpg?h=33be4f59https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/topics/european-theater-operationshttps://web.archive.org/web/20181215223002/https://history.amedd.army.mil/booksdocs/wwii/woundblstcs/chapter1.htmhttps://gacbe.ac.in/pdf/ematerial/18BDS62C-U3.pdf