An optimization approach to workforce planning for the information technology field

To balance the competing goals of reducing infrastructure and preserving information technology (IT) skills, the Army must carefully manage military, government, civilian, and private-sector contractor workforces in the IT field. Using Fort Bragg, NC, as a test case, this report shows how a linear programming framework helps explore the cost and personnel consequences of management decisions that change the structure of the IT workforce. With a systematic determination of who can do what in the IT field, the authors conclude that with linear programming the consequences of policy changes can be quantified and better understood, a wide variety of policies can be studied, and the approach could be extended beyond the installation level.