Alphabet’s Eric Schmidt is headed to the Pentagon

Today Defense Secretary Ash Carter revealed that the Pentagon is assembling a “Defense Innovation Advisory Board” comprised of 12 leaders in the tech field. This board’s purpose will be to advise the federal government on the technological and cultural challenges that the globe can expect to face over the coming decade, and taking the helm will be Alphabet chairman and Google CEO emeritus Eric Schmidt.

Although this board is being put together by the Department of Defense, Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook says that the board “will not engage in discussion of military operations or strategy.” Rather, the group of Silicon Valley innovators will serve in an advisory capacity to help streamline internal DoD technology and help the department adapt to looming organizational or cultural challenges.

The press release compares the board to the Defense Business Board, saying, “Just as the Defense Business Board provides advice to the department on best business practices from the private sector, the Defense Innovation Advisory Board will provide advice on the best and latest practices in innovation that the department can emulate.”

The Pentagon hopes that Schmidt will bring a “unique perspective” to the organization’s practices and help them improve business operations by harnessing the latest in technology and creative thinking. For the full press release, click the button below.

[press]Today, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter announced plans to establish a Defense Innovation Advisory Board. The new board is an effort to enhance DoD’s culture, organization and processes by tapping innovators from the private sector, in Silicon Valley and beyond. It represents Secretary Carter’s enduring commitment to building lasting partnerships between the public and private sectors.

Just as the Defense Business Board provides advice to the department on best business practices from the private sector, the Defense Innovation Advisory Board will provide advice on the best and latest practices in innovation that the department can emulate.

The board’s mandate is to provide department leaders independent advice on innovative and adaptive means to address future organizational and cultural challenges, including the use of technology alternatives, streamlined project management processes and approaches – all with the goal of identifying quick solutions to DoD problems.

The Defense Innovation Advisory Board will seek to advise the department on areas that are deeply familiar to Silicon Valley companies, such as rapid prototyping, iterative product development, complex data analysis in business decision making, the use of mobile and cloud applications, and organizational information sharing.

The board will not engage in discussion of military operations or strategy.

The board will be chaired by Alphabet Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt. It will be comprised of up to 12 individuals who have successfully led large private and public organizations, and excelled at identifying and adopting new technology concepts. Members will be selected jointly by Secretary Carter and Dr. Schmidt. Members will represent a cross-section of America’s most innovative industries, drawing on technical and management expertise from Silicon Valley and beyond.

As chairman of Alphabet, and as the author of “How Google Works,” Schmidt has a unique perspective on the latest practices in harnessing and encouraging innovation, and the importance of technology in driving organizational behavior and business operations.[/press]