The Marine  Corps has taken several steps to establish its special operations command,  such as activating the Command’s headquarters, establishing Marine Corps  special operations forces units, and deploying these units to conduct  special operations missions; however, DOD did not use critical practices  of effective strategic planning when developing the initial force structure  plans for the Command. As a result of limitations in the strategic planning  process, the Marine Corps special operations command has identified  several force structure challenges that will likely affect the Command’s  ability to perform its full range of responsibilities, and is working to revise  its force structure to address these challenges. Such analyses are critical to the Marine Corps’  efforts to develop a strategic human capital approach for the management  of personnel in its special operations forces units. Without the benefit of  these analyses, the Marine Corps has developed an interim policy to assign  some personnel to special operations forces units for extended tour  lengths to account for the additional training and skills needed by these  personnel. However, this interim policy is inconsistent with the Marine  Corps special operations command’s goal for the permanent assignment of  some personnel within the special operations community. While Some Personnel Requirements Have Been Identified, Marine Corps Special Operations Command Has Not Fully Identified the Critical Skills and Competencies Required of Its Personnel

While the Marine Corps special operations command has identified some  critical skills and competencies that are needed to perform special  operations missions, it has not fully identified these requirements because  it has not yet conducted a comprehensive analysis to determine all the  critical skills and additional training required of personnel in its units. Marine Corps Has Developed an Interim Policy to Manage Personnel in Its Special Operations Command, but It Lacks Consensus on a Strategic Human Capital Approach

To address the personnel needs of the Marine Corps special operations  command, Headquarters, Marine Corps, has established an interim policy  that provides for extended assignments of some personnel in special  operations forces units; however, the absence of a comprehensive analysis  of the critical skills and training required of personnel in special  operations forces units has contributed to a lack of consensus within the  Marine Corps on a strategic human capital approach to manage these  personnel. Until the Marine Corps special operations command  completes a comprehensive analysis to identify and document the critical  skills and additional training needed by its future workforce to perform  the Command’s full range of assigned special operations missions, the  Marine Corps will not have a sound basis for developing or evaluating  alternative strategic human capital approaches for the management of  personnel assigned to its special operations forces units. USSOCOM Does Not Have a Sound Basis for Determining Whether Marine Corps Special Operations Forces Training Programs Prepare Units for Missions

USSOCOM does not have a sound basis for determining whether Marine  Corps special operations forces training programs are preparing units for  their missions because it has not established common training standards  for many special operations skills and it has not formally evaluated  whether these programs will prepare units to be fully interoperable with  DOD’s other special operations forces. The Marine Corps special  operations command has provided training for its forces that is based on  training that was provided to conventional units that were assigned some  special operations missions prior to the activation of the Command, and  by selectively incorporating the training that USSOCOM’s other service  components provide to their forces. Furthermore, USSOCOM has not formally validated whether the training  used to prepare Marine Corps forces meets special operations standards  and prepares forces to be fully interoperable with the department’s other  special operations forces. Appendix I: Scope and Methodology

To assess the extent to which the Marine Corps special operations  command (Command) has identified the force structure needed to  perform its mission, we identified and reviewed Department of Defense  (DOD) reports related to the department’s efforts to increase the size of  special operations forces by integrating Marine Corps forces into the U.S.  Special Operations Command (USSOCOM).
Why GAO Did This Study

The Department of Defense (DOD) has relied on special operations forces to conduct military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq and to perform other tasks such as training foreign military forces. To meet the demand for these forces, DOD established a Marine Corps service component under the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) to integrate Marine Corps forces. Under the authority of the Comptroller General, GAO assessed the extent to which (1) the Marine Corps special operations command has identified its force structure requirements, (2) the Marine Corps has developed a strategic human capital approach to manage personnel in its special operations command, and (3) USSOCOM has determined whether Marine Corps training programs are preparing its forces for assigned missions. GAO performed its work with the Marine Corps and USSOCOM and analyzed DOD plans for this new command.

What GAO Found

While the Marine Corps has made progress in establishing its special operations command (Command), the Command has not yet fully identified the force structure needed to perform its assigned missions. DOD developed initial force structure plans to establish the Command; however, it did not use critical practices of strategic planning, such as the alignment of activities and resources and the involvement of stakeholders in decision-making processes when developing these plans. As a result of limitations in the strategic planning process, the Command has identified several force structure challenges that will likely affect the Command's ability to perform its full range of responsibilities, and is working to revise its force structure. Although preliminary steps have been taken, the Marine Corps has not developed a strategic human capital approach to manage the critical skills and competencies required of personnel in its special operations command. While the Command has identified some skills needed to perform special operations missions, it has not conducted a comprehensive analysis to determine all of the critical skills and incremental training required of personnel in its special operations forces units. These analyses are critical to the Marine Corps' efforts to develop a strategic human capital approach for the management of personnel in its special operations forces units. Without the benefit of these analyses, the Marine Corps has developed an interim policy to assign some personnel to special operations forces units for extended tour lengths to account for the additional training and skills; however, the policy is inconsistent with the Command's goal for the permanent assignment of some personnel within the special operations community. Until the Command completes an analysis to identify and document the critical skills and competencies needed by its future workforce to perform its full range of special operations missions, the Marine Corps will not have a sound basis for developing or evaluating alternative strategic human capital approaches for managing personnel assigned to its special operations forces units. USSOCOM does not have a sound basis for determining whether the Command's training programs are preparing units for their missions because it has not established common training standards for many special operations skills and it has not formally evaluated whether these programs prepare units to be fully interoperable with other special operations forces. The Command is providing training to its forces that is based on training programs for conventional units that were assigned some special operations missions prior to the Command's activation and incorporates the training that USSOCOM's other service components provide to their forces. However, USSOCOM has not validated that the training for Marine Corps forces prepares them to be fully interoperable with DOD's other special operations forces. Without an evaluation, USSOCOM cannot demonstrate the needed assurances that Marine Corps forces are fully interoperable with its other forces, which may jeopardize the success of future joint missions.