Assessing the Third Offset Strategy

Please see the CSIS report Assessing the Third Offset Strategy, which summarizes the discussions and analysis of this conference.

On October 28, 2016, the Center for Strategic and International Studies hosted a day long conference examining the Third Offset Strategy. The U.S. faces a global security environment in which its traditional conventional military advantage is eroding. Over the past thirty years, revolutions in networks and precision weapons cemented U.S. conventional dominance. The Third Offset Strategy is a Department of Defense initiative that seeks to identify the next generation of concepts and capabilities necessary to guarantee U.S. military superiority in the coming decades.

The conference featured remarks from Secretary Carter, Deputy Secretary Work, and other US government officials, together with allied and non-governmental experts. The proceedings addressed the global context for the Third Offset Strategy, its focus and progress, and its challenges.


Conference Agenda:

7:00-8:00 a.m. Registration and Coffee

8:00-9:00 a.m. Opening Plenary: Defining the Offset Strategy

Robert Work
Deputy Secretary of Defense

Stephanie O’Sullivan
Principal Deputy Director for National Intelligence

General Paul Selva, USAF
Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

Moderator:
Dr. Kathleen Hicks
Former Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy and
Director, International Security Program
Center for Strategic and International Studies

9:05-10:00 a.m. Keynote Address: The Path to the Innovative Future of Defense

Ash Carter
Secretary of Defense

Moderator:
Dr. John Hamre
Former Deputy Secretary of Defense and
President and CEO
Center for Strategic and International Studies

10:00-10:30 a.m. Coffee Break

10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Morning Breakout Sessions

I. Offset for What? US Strategy for Great Powers, Chaos Makers, and Global Cross-Currents

Sir Lawrence Freedman
Emeritus Professor of War Studies
King's College London

Dr. David Kilcullen
Founder and Chairman
Caerus Global Solutions

Dr. Barry Posen
Ford International Professor of Political Science and
Director of the Security Studies Program
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Dr. Kori Schake
Research Fellow
Hoover Institution, Stanford University

Moderator:
James Baker
Director of the Office of Net Assessment

II. Leveraging U.S. Defense Industry and Beyond

Shahar Abuhazira
CEO
Roboteam Inc.

Leanne Caret
President and CEO
Boeing Defense, Space & Security

Pierre Chao
Founding Partner, Renaissance Strategic Advisors and
Managing Partner, Enlightenment Capital 

Dr. Arati Prabhakar
Director
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency

Frank Kendall
Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics

Moderator: 
Andrew Hunter
Former Director, Joint Rapid Acquisition Cell and 
Director, Defense Industrial Initiatives Group
Center for Strategic and International Studies

12:00 p.m.-12:45 p.m.  Lunch

12:45-2:00 p.m.  Afternoon Breakout Sessions

I.  Innovating Together: The Role of Allies and Partners 

Øystein Bø
Secretary of State for the Norwegian Ministry of Defense 

Dr. Janine Davidson
Undersecretary of the Navy

General Sir Gordon Messenger, RM
Vice Chief of the Defence Staff
UK Ministry of Defence

Andrew Shearer
Former Australian National Security Adviser and 
Senior Adviser 
Center for Strategic and International Studies

Moderator:
Dr. Michael Green
Former Senior Director for Asia, National Security Council and
Senior Vice President for Asia and Japan Chair 
Center for Strategic and International Studies

II. From Cyber to Sub-surface: Key Operational Challenges for Innovators

Rear Admiral Michael Manazir, USN
Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Warfare Systems
U.S. Navy

Major General Walter Piatt, USA 
Deputy Director for Operations 
U.S. Army Rapid Capabilities Office

Lieutenant General Robert Schmidle, USMC, Ret.
Former Principal Deputy Director 
Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation

Brigadier General Brian Killough, USAF
Director of Strategy, Concepts, and Assessments
Strategic Plans and Requirements, U.S. Air Force

Moderator:
Mackenzie Eaglen
Resident Fellow
American Enterprise Institute

2:15 – 3:30 p.m.  Closing Plenary Session: New Perspectives on Defense Innovation and Third Offset

Su Jin Chang
Principal, Center for Acquisition Management Sciences (CAMS)
The MITRE Corporation

Pete Newell 
Visiting Senior Research Fellow
Center for Technology and National Security Policy
National Defense University

Dr. Will Roper
Director
Strategic Capabilities Office

Dr. Peter W. Singer
Strategist and Senior Fellow
New America

Moderator:
Patrick Tucker
Technology Editor, Defense One


This event is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense.