Training and Familiarization with the Battle Command Sustainment Support System

Commanders always require a large amount of data in order to maintain situational awareness, a very complicated endeavor especially during deployments in Iraq or Afghanistan with subordinate units spread across the country. The Battle Command Sustainment Support System (BCS3) is the logistics Battle Command system that provides command and control to logistics commanders. The BCS3's capabilities include the logistics common operating picture, In-transit visibility of convoys and commodities, logistics status and Standard Army Information System reporting, and Reception, Staging, Onward Movement, and Integration. Unfortunately, in spite of its vast capabilities, units underutilize the BCS3 in the field. There are numerous possible reasons for the low use of the system as a whole and evidence also points to lack of use in specific modules and program capabilities. Although recent BCS3 software improvements may assist operators to perform common tasks, a key to increasing the BCS3's popularity is to improve familiarization by logistics managers specifically. Training and certification of Functional Area 90 students during their attendance at Intermediate Level Education at the Command and General Staff College should increase their willingness to use the BCS3 in the field. Findings of this study conclude that a correlation does not exists between confidence to manage BCS3 operators in the field but willingness to operate and manage the system is dependent on three factors: (a) the amount, quality, and type of formal BCS3 training, (b) the degree of familiarization to the BCS3, and (c) how well the logistics manager understands the capabilities within the BCS3.