ABSTRACT
This study was conducted on behalf of the Haldane Spearmen Consortium, as a number of high-level Ministry of Defence (MOD) strategy papers have identified convincing evidence that emerging technologies will have Social and & Organisational (S&O) impact. A detailed understanding of what these S&O impacts might consist of and their subsequent effect on operational capability has remained less clear. This study was conducted with the aim of identifying the potential S&O impact of emerging technologies within military networks by way of identifying specific S&O issues across a number of key areas, such as teams, processes, command and control, culture and linking users to technology. The purpose was to consolidate and set out S&O criteria that can be used in the development of reliable and valid S&O measurement tools. For the purposes of this study emerging technologies were defined as those
distinctive technologies that will underpin future technical capabilities. Emerging technologies consist of a broad range of developments from immature technologies in the early proof-of-principle stages through to novel defence applications of existing, mature technology. They will define the future environment in which UK Armed Forces have to operate, can potentially redefine the way in which modern warfare is conducted, and may render existing capability obsolete.
