| Since the attacks on September 11, 2001, a major transformation of the United States Army began to create a modular, scalable, and modernized military force. This effort was the most significant restructuring of military forces in the last 80 years. However, after 6 years of sustained combat operations in the Middle East many of the collaboration systems employed are estimated to be only 75% effective and fall short of the required 99% level. In addition, no research exists that addresses this phenomenon at the brigade echelon. Therefore, a qualitative phenomenological study was conducted to examine the lack of collaboration system effectiveness at the brigade echelon. Specifically, this study was focused on developing a better understanding of the factors that contribute to and prohibit effective communications at the brigade echelon. Purposeful sampling was used to select 15 brigade staff personnel from a population of 6,500 who have completed at least one 12 month deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan within the last 5 years. Semi-structured interview questions were used to collect data on the experiences of subject matter experts with operational experience using collaboration systems employed in support of combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan through participation in face-to-face interviews. Data were analyzed using a constant analysis approach to help identify the critical components of communication, how they affect collaboration systems at the brigade echelon, further the theoretical understanding of communication theory, and provide a foundation for generalizations of other military services, support agencies, and civilian organizations that rely on the latest technology for enhancing collaboration to gain a competitive advantage. The findings of this study led to the identification of additional collaboration barriers not found in literature such as operating in adverse environments, power outages, and lack of training. Furthermore, several of the mitigation measures used to enhance collaboration were actually acknowledged in the findings as being barriers. As a result, recommendations for future research include the evaluation of the magnitude barriers have on collaboration systems effectiveness and an evaluation of the potential adverse effects mitigation measures may have on collaboration system effectiveness. |
