Approval / Concurrence / Coordination / Consultation / Deconfliction / Notification
Background:
Divergent Options is a non-politically aligned non-revenue generating national security website that, in 1,000 words or less, provides unbiased, dispassionate, candid articles that assess a national security situation, present multiple options to address the situation, and articulate the risk and gain of each option. Please note that while we assess a national security situation and may provide options, we never recommend a specific option.
Below you will see a Call for Papers. If you are not interested in writing on this topic, we always welcome individual articles on virtually any national security situation an author is passionate about. Please do not let our call for papers cause you to hesitate to send us your idea. We look forward to hearing from you!
Call for Papers:
Divergent Options is calling for national security papers assessing situations or discussing options related to Coordinating All The Things.
Please limit your article to 1,000 words and write using our Options Paper or Assessment Paper templates which are designed for ease of use by both writers and readers alike.
Please send your article to submissions@divergentoptions.org by October 15, 2022.
Below is a list of prompts that may inspire potential writers:
– In the context of a global threat, assess whether existing coordination mechanisms within a specified national security organization are sufficient.
– In the context of a global threat, if existing coordination mechanisms within a specified national security organization are insufficient, provide options to improve said mechanisms.
– If two national security organizations with competing interests coordinate with each other and an impasse results, provide criteria / options that could help guide resolving the impasse.
– Assess the psychological impact and / or value of terms like Approval / Concurrence / Coordination / Consultation / Deconfliction / Notification within a national security organization.
– Assess whether all the things need to be coordinated.
– Assess whether Country X or Organization X has a culture that values coordination.
– Assess whether a career that emphasizes speed and decisiveness eventually backfires when a person rises to a level that is indifferent to tempo and values organization-wide coordination over execution.
– Provide options to identify employees with a coordination-mindset early, and put them on a career track that values coordinartion.
– Assess whether training and educational structures within a national security organizations are teaching their students to value coordination.
– If training and educational structures within national security organizations are not teaching their students to value coordination, provide options to remedy this situation.
– Assess the impact of choosing not to coordinate.
– Assess the impact of choosing to over-coordinate.
– Assess whether Global Coordination is possible in a specified national security organization.
– Provide options to improve Global Coordination in a specified national security organization.
