Raduege Brings Net-centricity to Broader Audience
After playing a key role in bringing the idea of network-centric operations to the Department of Defense as director of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) and commander of the Joint Task Force for Global Network Operations, Air Force Lieutenant General Harry D. Raduege Jr. (Ret.) has begun his civilian career determined to foster those principles in both the public and private sectors.
Raduege, who retired after 35 years of military service, including five years as DISA director, joined Deloitte & Touche earlier this year as chairman of the firm’s new Center for Network Innovation. This spring, Deloitte also concluded a contract agreement with The Cohen Group, a defense consulting firm headed by former Secretary of Defense and U.S. Senator William S. Cohen, for Raduege’s consulting services.
In addition, Raduege has also taken on a leadership position with the Network Centric Operations Industry Consortium (NCOIC), a group of 80 companies, organizations and affiliates committed to the goal of global network-centric operations.
With his post-military plans firmed up, Raduege reflected recently on the factors that influenced his latest career decisions and his goals for the future.
“I was very proud of my 35 and a half years on active duty,” he said. “Counting my time in ROTC, I wore our nation’s uniform for 40 years. When you dedicate yourself to things that are important to our nation and world, such as service in the U.S. military, there are some principles that come into play that are very important to you—things like working with individuals who have a code of conduct, high integrity, moral responsibility and a call to service beyond self.”
“The U.S. Air Force has three core values—integrity, service above self and excellence in all we do. Those core values were principles that I also took into my life after the military. I really wanted to look for employment with an organization or series of organizations that live by those principles. That’s what I believe I have found. As I interviewed, I was looking not just at what job I could do, or how I could contribute, but also at what the organization was about in terms of principles. I found those principles at Deloitte & Touche,” he continued.
The Center for Network Innovation is being modeled on the Center for Health Solutions, which Deloitte recently initiated under the leadership of former Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson.
“Networking, net-centricity and netcentric operations are such important areas for the future of all business operations, whether that be warfighting or traditional business operations,” Raduege observed. “It gives us tremendous opportunity to work across not only the public but also the private marketplace. One of the things that really excited me about the opportunity with Deloitte was that I was going to be able to work in the areas of the public and private sectors. Network-centric operations applies across all of those.”
The network center will include a customer-experience facility for demonstrating innovative approaches to governing by network, he explained. “When you govern by network, you also have to apply principles of network governance. So we’re coming up with new strategies for information management, data strategy models and innovative approaches to risk and vulnerability assessments. We’ll also be able to provide advice to our customers on best practices and standards for interoperability and net-centricity.”
While he is a full-time employee of Deloitte, Raduege will work as a senior counselor with The Cohen Group under a consulting arrangement between the two firms. “The Cohen Group was interested in what Deloitte and I would be able to bring to them as far as expanding their opportunity for consulting in the area of information technology and related fields,” he said, adding, “For me, this was wonderful because it gave me the opportunity to work with top consulting, finance and audit professionals in two world-class organizations.”
The retired general is currently serving as vice chairman of the executive council of the NCOIC, and is slated to become chairman this fall. As part of a three-year commitment, he will then serve as chairman emeritus.
Raduege summed up the thinking that led to creation of the NCOIC this way: “Several years ago, Carl O’Berry began thinking of a means in which industry leaders might be able to join together in looking at all the various standards that are part of information technology. His vision was that an industry consortium could then collectively recommend the best standards in certain areas so that we could build on global interoperability—making systems work together better from the beginning.”
“The bottom line on all of this was that by industry agreeing on and recommending the best standards for IT, we could offer solutions for customers more quickly, and customers would be able to achieve acquisitions faster. This was an idea to speed up the acquisition process, which we’ve been struggling with for years because it is so long,” he said.
“I see this Deloitte Center for Network Innovation as fascinating work,” Raduege concluded, “because network innovation is going to fuel business transformation in the future, whether your business is warfighting, intelligence or traditional business operations.” ♦
