Determining a Critical-Skill Hierarchy for Command Post of the Future (CPOF)

Abstract : The Command Post of the Future (CPOF) is a dynamic visualization tool that supports collaborative decision-making in tactical units. The system uses a customizable workspace based on the user's needs rather than a static format. While such an approach to digital-systems design offers flexibility and generality of use, it might also increase the complexity of learning to use the interface. As a precursor to examining alternative training approaches for CPOF, this report documents an analysis of and hierarchical structure for underlying CPOF skills. A knowledge extraction process was conducted with CPOF domain experts (DEs) to uncover the knowledge needed to use CPOF. The DEs performed a series of tasks based on the practical exercises developed for training Soldiers. A Critical Skills Document was iteratively updated and reorganized to identify the major components of the system and the procedures for accomplishing various tasks. The Critical Skills Document represents CPOF skills in a way to show their generality and applicability. Instructional designers can use it to determine what to train as well as a guide for developing learning assessments. The findings provide a foundation for comparing training approaches for CPOF and similar digital systems.