Kurt McDowell, a colonel in the U.S. Army and Director of the Washington Field Office for U.S. Southern Command, joins the conversation to explore innovative military strategies. He and co-guest Michael Smith advocate for an 'elastic mindset' essential for adapting to future warfare by 2040. They discuss how effectual logic, an entrepreneurial approach, can transform military planning. The duo also emphasizes the need for a cultural shift within the Army that embraces technology's role in decision-making and the lessons learned from recent conflicts like Ukraine.
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insights INSIGHT
Elastic Mindset Is Foundational
The elastic mindset is foundational for U.S. military innovation in 2040.
It prioritizes cognitive approach over just technology or resources.
insights INSIGHT
Start With Means Not Fixed Ends
Effectual logic starts with current means rather than a fixed end state.
It asks "What do you have? Who are you?" to shape achievable ends.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Plan By Means, Not Pacing Threats
Avoid high-certainty, threat-specific planning that locks modernization to one scenario.
Instead, adopt a means-based approach that begins with the "bird in hand" capabilities.
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One of the many diverse educational opportunities at the U.S. Army War College are specialized seminars that deep-dive into specific areas of interest. Kurt McDowell and Mike Smith participated in the AY25 Futures Seminar, and they're in the studio with host Darrell Driver to discuss their findings. Sponsored by the J-7, Lieutenant General Anderson, the seminar was tasked with exploring innovation for maneuver warfare in 2040. , McDowell, Smith and the team advocate for an "elastic mindset" and "effectual logic," a means-based approach that focuses on what's available, rather than a traditional causal, end-state approach. They contrast this with the military's current high-certainty planning scenarios, which are often based on specific threats like Russia and China.
The first kind of foundational key finding is that the elastic mindset is essential for U.S. military innovation.
Kurt McDowell is a colonel in the U.S. Army and the Director of the Washington Field Office for U.S. Southern Command. Previously, he held key armor and information operations roles, including deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, and assignments on the Joint Staff and in U.S. Army Europe and Africa. He is a graduate of the AY25 Resident Course at the U.S. Army War College.
Michael Smith is a U.S. Army colonel and an Army space operations officer. He most recently served as the Chief of Operations (G33) at U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command and deployed multiple times in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom, and United Assistance. He is a native of Ambridge, PA, and is a graduate of the AY25 Resident Program at the U.S. Army War College.
The views expressed in this presentation are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Army War College, U.S. Army, or Department of Defense.
Photo Description: Students from the Infantry and Armor Basic Leader courses train for their future careers and develop realistic tactical skills during a combined competitive maneuver exercise at Fort Benning's Good Hope Training Area November 03, 2017. Students are tasked with the objective of defending or seizing an installation.
Photo Credit: Patrick A. Albright/MCoE PAO Photographer Used under Creative Commons license
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