Leveraging diversity for military effectiveness: Diversity, inclusion and belonging in the UK and US Armed Forces
Abstract: In an evolving strategic environment, the Armed Forces need to effectively leverage all available advantages, including those stemming from their workforces, to maximise strategic and operational effectiveness. To support this effort, RAND researchers conducted a study to examine the opportunities for leveraging workforce diversity to enhance military effectiveness.
The study comprised a large-scale literature review as well as semi-structured interviews with subject matter experts and practitioners from the UK and United States to produce three outputs. Firstly, the study provided a framework to help guide the UK and US Armed Forces in their assessments of links between different kinds of diversity and military effectiveness, and how these links may be better leveraged in future. Secondly, the study team developed six vignettes illustrating the framework in relation to various operational and strategic requirements identified by the UK and US Armed Forces. Lastly, the study identified key implications and options for the Armed Forces as they consider leveraging the various operational and strategic advantages provided by diversity.
The study findings show that there are significant opportunities for leveraging workforce diversity to enhance military effectiveness across a wide spectrum of Defence activity. These opportunities cumulatively position diversity as a strategic enabler for the UK and US Armed Forces.
Abstract: This research set out to investigate the experiences of ‘grown up’ children from armed forces families, to gather their reflections on childhood and education, and to seek their advice to inform the current armed forces community, policy-makers and practitioners. The Service Children’s Progression Alliance (SCiP) defines a child from an armed forces family as “a person whose parent or carer serves in the Regular Armed Forces, or as a Reservist, or has done at any point during the first 25 years of that person’s life” (SCiP, 2017: para 2) and the Office for Students refers to this definition in their documentation relating to student characteristics (OfS n.d. para 8, see also OfS, 2020: para 11). In this research we use the term ‘grown up’ to indicate individuals over the age of 18 recognised to have reached the legal age of adulthood in the UK. This group of individuals are currently overlooked in research, policy and practice as the focus continues to be on serving members of the armed forces, veterans, and families, including school-aged children.