Strategy Committee
Committees » Strategy

The purpose of the Strategy Committee is to expand and refine CENSA's internal and external organizational strategy. The Strategy Committee:

• Constructs and develops virtual, collaborative research flow
• Synthesizes Committee Action Plans into an organizational strategy
• Serves as the lead agent for consultative and research efforts
• Develops interim strategy objectives milestones and tasks
• Ensures synthesis between committees and cross-talk
• Oversees Board of Directors nominations and vote
• Partnering Case Study: CENSA's Strategic Partnership with Georgetown University
• Georgetown University Graduate Tutorial Program on International Security Affairs

The Director of Strategy is Gregory Manuel.

 

Countering Strategic Challenges

• Funding
  One risk is failing to achieve a level of funding that sustains and expands communications mechanisms among members and a website for public information dispersal. CENSA has addressed this risk by focusing on building its low-cost baseline infrastructure that allows it the flexibility to operate sustainably at a minimal funding level until larger project-related and capacity-building funding is received.
• Quality membership
  A second risk is failing to energize current members, attract a steady stream of additional members of the highest caliber and of the greatest diversity of backgrounds and professions, and uniting the group under the aegis of relentless scrutiny of national security issues. CENSA has addressed this risk by establishing a variety of programs and projects to suit different levels of member commitment, and has a membership committee charged with rigorously upholding member standards and membership growth goals.
• Substantive contribution
  A major risk is failing to incubate projects of substantial content value to emerging national security affairs. CENSA must develop projects of the highest analytical and editorial rigor, each with a clear set of pragmatic implementation steps. CENSA has addressed this risk by establishing mechanisms that ensure regular Board oversight of projects, as well as internal communication of best practices.
• Strategic partnerships -- maintaining networked relevance
  To ensure that CENSA maintains linkages with those officials and communities where its views are most likely to be taken seriously, the CENSA leadership team regularly seeks to build strategic partnerships with institutions and with mentors in the broad national security arena, i.e., Fletcher Alumni Association, UN Young Professional Group, Rhodes.
• Risks of an all-volunteer team
  A fifth risk is that of the leadership team and membership failing to commit adequate time to CENSA responsibilities as well as failing adequately to bring to bear organizational strengths on large tasks. CENSA has addressed this risk by establishing mechanisms for rigorous strategic planning and focus on high priority organizational objectives, as well as mechanisms to continuously improve operating efficiency.

CENSA's strategy enables its core strengths to drive our research and project perspectives and methodology. As a result, our long and short-term task forces focus on a five to twenty year time horizon, addressing issues that are less academic and more results-oriented than those of our peers because products draw upon the active real world experience of its practitioner members. CENSA's team recognizes that its model must address certain challenges to its strategy, and has implemented mechanisms to ensure these challenges are met.

 

Strategic Priorities

1. Electronic collaboration at the heart of the organization. CENSA has distinguished itself by using information technology to collaborate on its projects and administration. Use of the internet (including CENSA's website and intranet) and other communications tools have enabled our members to actively participate in CENSA projects regardless of their location. CENSA holds regular organizational and project-related meetings with participants around the United States and the world. In a key test of its systems in Fall 2000, more than two dozen CENSA Members successfully planned and completed an entire book -- the compendium of presidential transition memoranda -- over the course of several months without holding a face-to-face meeting. In the summer and fall of 2001, CENSA is repeating the process with its PINS (Program on Innovation in International Security) report, a ten-essay volume on innovation in national security to be published by year-end 2001.
2. A clean slate -- unencumbered by institutional baggage. The core of traditional national security issues reflects a focus on unitary rational actors and their influence on levers of politics, diplomacy and power. However, emerging and non-traditional issues are increasingly found on the security agenda as globalization, financial interdependence, health issues, and scientific and technological progress shape the world. The new issues cut globally across private industry and government compartmentalization, and challenge conventional institutions. CENSA brings together a group that cuts across sectors and institutions to focus on issues with a wide range of analytic perspectives. CENSA can do this because its members reflect the emerging challenges facing policy makers -- they come from a wide variety of disciplines, such as business, law, NGOs, the military, and technology, and approach the security agenda from a broad range of backgrounds and ideologies. Their perspective is shaped rather less by institutional politics and more by individual experience and analysis.
3. Low cost model allows flexibility and minimizes the administrative 'time-sink.' CENSA has expressly built its organization along minimalist lines, focused largely on ensuring that communications structures are in place to allow for project collaboration. The work of the organization is done largely by email and meetings conducted by conference call. Ongoing operational expenses to support this model have totaled less than $3,000 per year to date in in-kind services and outright expenditures. CENSA seeks to limit its need for property, plant, and equipment, and to outsource its infrequent needs for meeting facilities. Stage 2 staffing needs will focus on building a small office with 3-5 staff to leverage this communications systems and limit the need for significant physical infrastructure.
4. Embracing international members and US members abroad. CENSA focuses explicitly on linking together US practitioners abroad and select international members, which enriches policy contributions in the emerging globalized environment by creating new linkages and drawing upon field practitioners who previously found policy input difficult. Current linkages, for example, include practitioners in London, Budapest, Singapore, Beijing, and Trinidad, as well as more than a dozen locations in the U.S.
5. First mover. CENSA's strategy moved it explicitly into a vacant "market space", which has strengthened its value proposition. CENSA is the first organization to concentrate on developing this segment of professionals for national security leadership in this way. CENSA has been a leader in attracting the brightest rising stars among international security professionals and in utilizing the latest technology to do this. CENSA's founders believe that in having moved first, the model will be more influential and sustainable than other comparable startups, such as the US Committee on Forward Engagement.

 

Strategic Partnerships

CENSA seeks strategic partners to complement the organization's capabilities and help CENSA achieve its mission and strategy in a mutually beneficial way. These partnerships will focus on university professional program collaborations in CENSA's Stage 1, but in the latter part of Stage 2 CENSA will begin to expand these collaborations to major think tanks, regional issue organizations such as the Asia Society, and targeted non governmental organizations.

Partnering Case Study: CENSA's Strategic Partnership with Georgetown University

CENSA's affiliation with Georgetown University demonstrates the broad-reaching appeal of its mission, the talent of its membership, and the energy it has as an organization. In the 2000-2001 academic year, CENSA members taught two courses for graduate students at the prestigious School of Foreign Service -- on Counter-terrorism -- and directed six Tutorials on issues ranging from Korean Unification to Islamic Fundamentalism. CENSA's tutorials have connected CENSA members in the middle of their careers to graduate students at Georgetown that are about to embark in their chosen fields.

The Dean of Georgetown's School of Foreign Service -- Ambassador Robert Gallucci -- was the keynote speaker at our 2nd Annual Members Meeting on May 5th, 2001. The relationship between CENSA and Georgetown continues to grow and fulfills two of the demands CENSA has identified: (i) increasing opportunities to cross-fertilize private sector professionals and public servants, (ii) providing additional outlets for professional contributions of the rising generation.

Georgetown University Graduate Tutorial Program on International Security Affairs

Since the Fall of 2000 CENSA has sponsored two students each semester at Georgetown to assume leadership of a major research project. The uniqueness of the projects offered each semester is the support that registered students are provided by the CENSA network. All of CENSA's assets, contacts and network are at their disposal. After students decide on a topic related to an emerging international security issue the directors of the Tutorial program then identify senior mentors with specific expertise in the subject matter. The senior mentors then guide our students through the project by way of direct advice and the arranging of interviews. Students gain the full experience of managing the study and creating a full-length report with the assistance of both the Tutorial Directors and a senior mentor. The Tutorial Directors provide logistical support and monitor student progress, while the senior mentors provide research leads, assist in guiding the substantive aspects of each project, and coordinate to arrange research interviews. Before the semester ends, each participating student is responsible for producing a full-length, publishable research paper (25-40 pages) and conducting a 10 minute "policy brief" to a group of CENSA members. CENSA expects to expand this Tutorial program to other graduate security programs in our geographical centers.