Session 2.8c Update: Exerting Command and Control in the Digital Domain for Success on the 21st Century Battlefield – Lessons Learned from United States Special Operations Command
Tracks
| Wednesday, November 15, 2023 |
| 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM |
| Menzies Theatre |
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US Special Operations Command’s (USSOCOM) enterprise network supports over 80,000 users and operators spanning 24 time zones across the world, making it the fourth largest network in the U.S Department of Defence. The IT teams who manage the network are tasked with a singular mission …to connect operators to the data, communications, devices and applications needed to achieve mission success.
Like most global Defence networks, USSOCOM’s network is vast. It’s comprised of legacy systems often built with disparate needs in mind, running across non-classified, secret and top-secret networks, over a variety of transports. Often, IT teams were challenged simply to deliver email services at headquarters - much less to ensure global command and control, and continuity of communications and services.
The reality is that USSOCOM lacked visibility and control over this digital domain. They didn’t have the basic map that showed the boundaries, relationships, dependencies and authorities within the network environment that would allow IT leaders to exert the same command and control, the same maneuverability, as military forces achieved on the physical battlefield.
USSOCOM needed visibility into their global networks and they turned to Riverbed for help.
Join Colonel Joseph Pishock, (Retired), former Director of Networks and Services, USSOCOM for an engaging and informative discussion about how, after years of failing to exert command and control over its global networks, USCOCOM began leveraging end-to-end network visibility to:
- Support a global network needed to defeat a global network
- Shoot, move and communicate within the digital domain
- Understand the implications of PACE vs COOP and how to evolve beyond
- Empower IT teams’ decision-making to stay ahead of problems
- Monitor network needs and adjust in real time
- Ensure continuity of operations and mission support.
Speaker/s
COL Joseph Pishock
Commander Of 1st Signal Brigade
Riverbed
COLONEL (R) Joe Pishock is the former Director of Networks and Services for US Special Operations Command. From Summer 2020 until his recent retirement in the Summer of 2023, he oversaw the daily operations of the 4th largest network in the Department of Defense. SOCOM’s enterprise distributes multiple classifications of voice, video, and data to fixed and mobile sites around the world. Constantly changing to meet the needs of the mission and adapt to the situation, SOCOM communication demands adaptability, flexibility, and risk management to a level unique within the Department of Defense. His various SOF assignments include 2 tours in the Army’s elite Ranger Regiment and command in the 112th Special Operations Signal Battalion. Notably, he spent 4 years as the Operations Officer in the Joint Communications Unit – overseeing the global network used by the Joint Special Operations Command. COL Pishock also commanded an Army Signal Brigade in Korea and was the CIO G6 for the Army’s 25th Infantry Division, extending networks across the Pacific area of operations. Since August, Joe has been the Senior Director of Business Development for OCEUS Networks, a cutting-edge solutions company specializing in private 5G. He holds a Doctorate in Education from St. John’s University in New York City and was a Fellow in Residence at Columbia University. He also attended professional military schools with both the Air Force and the Marines. Joe is married to Kristine - herself a former Army jumpmaster. They have 3 kids, 2 dogs, and live in the Tampa area.
