Procedures for Documenting the Workshop Results

1. Presentations

Presentations during the first half of the workshop will be saved in softcopy for inclusion in the final proceedings.  Audio/visual recordings and material offered by sponsoring organizations will be included as determined appropriate by the organizing committee.

Presenters are encouraged to submit their briefing charts in Powerpoint format if possible.  Powerpoint with notes pages can be included in the proceedings.  If electronic copy is not provided, the material will be converted to electronically scanned images that can be included in the proceedings.

The workshop is intended to explore both traditional and non-traditional approaches to this area, and the intent is to impose minimal constraints on the discussions.  Consequently, presentations and all subsequent discussions should be attributable only to the presenters and delegates themselves and should not represent formal positions or objectives of their organizations.  The delegates should attempt to represent the views of their organizations but should be free to express personal opinions and recommendations that would not necessarily imply commitment or concurrence of their companies, agencies, or governments.

2.  Working Group Procedures and Products

Six working groups will be organized into two sessions, each with three groups.  The first session will address three technology areas, and the second session will address three areas concerned with adapting and evaluating commercial IT for military applications.

The working groups will be co-chaired by one representative of the military sector and one from the commercial sector.  The co-chairs will facilitate discussions and steer the groups toward specific findings and recommendations that can be brought to the attention of the full workshop in the plenary session on the last day.

Discussions in the working groups can consider the prior presentations on concepts and technologies and are the forum for asking questions and gaining additional insight into the potential to use commercial products and services to support the new military operational concepts.  They can also address concepts and technologies beyond those discussed in the prior presentations.  The co-chairs have full freedom to guide these discussions in any manner that they feel most productive.

Freedom of expression is encouraged in these discussions.  As noted above, the delegates are encouraged to present views that are a mix of organizational perspective and personal perspective.  Their statements will be attributable to themselves and will not imply any commitment or concurrence of their parent organizations.

Each working group will have a rapporteur who will take notes and assist the co-chairs in documenting the proceedings.  Documentation will be in two forms.  The first will be a set of charts for presentation at the plenary session.  The co-chairs will assure that charts are developed as the discussions progress, either by “grease pencil” on transparencies or by electronic means if those are available.  A suggested approach is to use the preparation of these charts as the basis for the discussions if electronic preparation and projection are available.  Another option is to use “flip charts” as a means to capture the information as it is discussed.  The rapporteur will focus on textual notes to augment these visual products and to provide a basis for subsequent assembly of a final, integrated product that can be disseminated to the delegates after the conclusion of the workshop.

3. Workshop Final Products

The final product of the workshop is intended to document the discussions and to present the findings and recommendations.  It will consist of several sections:

a) set of presentation charts and any notes that are provided by the speakers
b) the products of each working group, including visual display material and summary notes
c) the integrated findings, conclusions, and recommendations developed by the working group in plenary session, with commentary added by the workshop organizers as appropriate
d) proposed actions and plans for follow-on efforts

4.  Publication of Proceedings

Copies of the proceedings may be distributed free of charge, either in part or whole, to members of the international press concerned with Information Technology and potential military applications.  Delegates who wish that their material or comments be withheld from such distribution or who desire confidentiality in attribution should so advise the conference chairman.  All material submitted by delegates will be handled in accordance with their direction.

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