Research collaboration tools for the U.S. Department of Defense

Abstract

America's adversaries have shown their ability to quickly incorporate new technologies that threaten the U.S. and its interests. The Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) serves the Department of Defense (DoD) research and engineering community as the central resource for DoD-funded scientific, technical, engineering, and business information and exchange. Furthermore, DTIC fulfills a key role by producing secure collaborative tools that facilitate a rapid response to current and emerging threats. The new Research & Engineering (R&E) Gateway (created by DTIC), which includes DoDTechipedia, DoDTechSpace, Search and Analytics, and the Information Analysis Centers and Defense Innovation Marketplace, are aimed at enhancing DoD's ability to collaborate across the defense enterprise, identify solutions for technology challenges, and seek ways to ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent in an efficient manner. This article will examine the approach taken to develop the collaborative tools, intended goals, challenges to adoption of the sites, and some lessons learned. It will also review how DTIC has provided its registered customers with robust social media tools, albeit limited to the defense community.