Some commentators recently pointed to President-elect Donald Trump. specified Steve Feinberg was named Deputy Secretary of Defense to compensate for Pete Hegseth's lack of management experience. Feinberg certainly brings considerable experience to the role Trump nominated. He is co-chairman of Cerberus Capital, which invests in defense companies, particularly Dyncorp, which he acquired in 2010 and sold a decade later. Cerberus has also acquired a variety of small and medium-sized companies that are developing cutting-edge technologies that can be applied to defense applications.
But the idea that President Trump chose Feinberg because Hegseth lacked managerial expertise fails to recognize the difference between the roles of the secretary of defense and his deputy. The Secretary is the chief executive officer of the Department of Defense. He (previously there was only “he”) is also the top-level outward “face” of the division. The Secretary not only interacts directly with the President, but also takes the lead in dealing with his Cabinet-level counterparts on the National Security Council. He frequently meets with combatant commanders as well as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and military commanders.
He will also be in contact with other countries' defense and foreign ministers, as well as their prime ministers. Most importantly, the Secretary is part of the military chain of command and reports directly to the President, especially in times of crisis or actual conflict. Deputies can and do perform all of the aforementioned roles, but only on a temporary basis when the secretary is absent, usually on a trip abroad.
The Deputy Secretary, on the other hand, is the Chief Operating Officer of the Department of Defense. he or she (Kathleen Hicks (currently the first woman to hold the position) has overall responsibility for planning, planning, budgeting, and execution systems, as well as oversight of all other defense activities, including human resources, research, acquisition, and national defense activities. take responsibility. Agency. The vice chairman of the military is the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, but he also interacts regularly with military commanders and combatant commanders.
The Vice Chair is often responsible for leading a professional project or office, sometimes in collaboration with the Vice Chair. For example, Deputy Secretary John Hamre led the Pentagon's Y2K project. The project was intended to ensure that Department of Defense operations were not disrupted by potential errors in computer storage and calendar data resulting from the arrival of the new millennium. Robert Work, who served as deputy secretary of state in the second Obama administration, led efforts to forge closer military ties with Finland and Sweden, ultimately critical when the two countries recently joined NATO. It turned out that. And Hicks led the department's Replicator project, which is developing a series of small, inexpensive, disposable drones. She will also be responsible for directly overseeing the department's new Office of Strategic Capabilities.
Although business experience tends to be a prerequisite for success as deputy commissioner, not all councilors have it, and some were very successful during their tenure. On the other hand, MPs do not need to have any experience in government.
david packardAlthough he is perhaps the most qualified aide since the position was created after World War II, he had never served in government when President Richard Nixon selected him for the job. However, his years of experience as founder and leader of Hewlett-Packard enabled him to initiate a series of departmental management reforms, including the creation of the Defense Systems Management College, now part of the Defense Acquisition College. Ta. In contrast, there were many deputy secretaries with extensive government experience whose talent fell short of management and whose tenures were far from successful.
Feinberg actually has experience in government, having previously served as chairman of the President's Intelligence Advisory Council. But the most important thing is his business background. And it is not important to offset Hegseth. Their roles should not be confused. In fact, when these roles were mixed up, as has often been the case, the department's management suffered greatly.
Despite the yeomanlike efforts of several of his predecessors, Feinberg will be joining a Pentagon that continues to require strong management. Hopefully, he can successfully transform the department into a 21st century operation. Some of that activity remains a relic of the past, dating back decades, if not more. If he does so, he will certainly be among the more prominent figures to have held the office of Deputy Commissioner. Among them would be the great reformer David Packard.
Dov S. Zakheim is Center for Strategic and International Studies and Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors Foreign Policy Research Institute. He served as the Under Secretary of Defense (Inspector General) and Chief Financial Officer of the Department of Defense from 2001 to 2004 and as Deputy Secretary of Defense from 1985 to 1987.
