Net Assessment and Military Strategy: Retrospective and Prospective Essays

by Thomas G. Mahnken, Andrew W. Marshall

The Office of Net Assessment (ONA) was responsible for carrying out three programs in the Department of Defense from November 1973 until the collapse of the Soviet Union. Net assessments utilize a multidisciplinary approach to defense analysis to capture the dynamics of national or coalition military strengths and weaknesses for comparison with the capabilities of competitors and adversaries. In this book, essays by experts including a number of individuals who have served in or worked for the ONA in the past, such as Andrew Marshall (Director of the United States Department of Defense's Office of Net Assessment, 1973-2015) and Andrew May (Associate Director of the United States Department of Defense's Office of Net Assessment) offer critical insights on the relative military power of the United States vis-à-vis potential adversaries over time. This book is an invaluable resource for scholars and students in international relations, political science, and conflict and security.

Genres: Military Fiction, History

Kindle Edition

Published March 20, 2020

Reviews

[Andrew Carr · Rating 4 out of 5]

An outstanding overview of the process of Net Assessment, and the role of these analytical tools in US policy, particularly during the Cold War.

One of the key insights I realized from this book is that the most important word in 'Net Assessment' is not 'assessment' but 'net'. This is a tool explicitly designed to support Marshall's strategic concern of identifying asymmetric opportunities within the Cold War competition between the USA and USSR. Where some forms of assessment like SWOT methods seek to be comprehensive, what we might term a 'Gross Assessment', Net Assessment is about parsing back common features to identify what is left over and may be exploited. This is the great strength of the tool, serving a specific strategy. It is also is a weakness which many do not seem to have grasped, trying to apply the tool higgledy-piggledy to any significant issue, country or concern.

The one chapter I would have liked to read would be a description of how such documents were written. We get a sense of this in various parts, one chapter even includes common headings within deeply classified net assessments. But how were they put together, what kind of editorial guidance did Marshall provide, how did he help others think and re-think their analysis.

This book is not a festschrift of Marshall (you can find one on the Marshall Foundation website - https://www.andrewwmarshallfoundation...) but it is a nice way of remembering and respecting his intellectual contribution. In showing how it developed and worked, Thomas Mahnken has provided a gift for students of strategy everywhere. Strongly recommended.

[Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book, providing a series of essays on the history of Net Assessment alongside various how-to guides. The editor, Thomas G. Mahnken, has brought together scholars who worked with the originator of Net Assessment, Andrew Marshall, to provide an overview of a topic known more for its name than its products. Before reading this book I was familiar with the broad history of Net Assessment within the Department of Defense, but I did not appreciate how to “do” Net Assessment. This book answered that question. The first part contains a series of historical essays on the origination of Net Assessment during the Cold War and its solidification as a formal process via the Office of Net Assessment in the DoD. Many of the produced assessments are discussed, although secrecy still limits their full public appraisal. The second half of essays are a robust set of guidelines and processes that succinctly explain how a Net Assessment is constructed. A great book for anyone tasked with thinking holistically about a problem. Highly recommended for anyone wanting to better understand the role and process of Net Assessment.