John J. Garstka
John Joseph Garstka[1] (born February 20, 1961)[2] is the Assistant Director, Concepts and Operations at the Office of Force Transformation, Office of the Secretary of Defense, at the United States Department of Defense, and is a recognized thought leader in the area of Network Centric Warfare.[3]
Biography
Garstka is a recognized international speaker and has delivered the Network Centric Warfare message to military and commercial audiences worldwide. In addition, he has lectured at Harvard University, Georgetown University, the University of California at Irvine, University of Maryland, the Army War College, the Air War College, the Naval War College, and the Naval Postgraduate School.
Prior to joining the Office of Force Transformation, Garstka was the Chief Technology Officer in the Joint Staff Directorate for Command, Control, Computer and Communications (C4) Systems. In this capacity, he played a key role in the development and conceptualization of network-centric warfare and was the Joint Staff lead for the Department of Defense's Report to Congress on Network Centric Warfare.
Prior to joining the Joint Staff, Garstka was a Senior Systems Engineer with Cambridge Research Associates, where he had responsibility for leading consulting engagements with commercial and government customers.
Before joining Cambridge, Garstka served as an officer in the United States Air Force (USAF) for ten years, with assignments on the Air Staff and at USAF Space and Missile Center.
Early life and education
Garstka was born in Tokyo[2] and raised in Los Angeles.[1] He graduated from Westchester High School in 1979.[4] Garstka is a Distinguished Graduate of the United States Air Force Academy, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics in 1983. He also holds a Master of Science Degree in Engineering-Economic Systems from Stanford University, where he studied as a Hertz Fellow.
Publications
Publications and reports he has authored or co-authored include:
- Network Centric Warfare: Developing and Leveraging Information Superiority, by Alberts, Garstka, and Stein, CCRP Press, 1999. This book has been reprinted by leading IT companies and translated into three languages. Online at the DoD Command and Control Research Program
- Understanding Information Age Warfare, by Alberts, Garstka, Hayes, and Signori, CCRP Press, 2001. Online at the DoD Command and Control Research Program
- Network Centric Warfare: Its Origin and Future, which appeared in Proceedings of the Naval Institute in January 1998.
- Network Centric Warfare: An Overview of Emerging Theory, which appeared in PHALANX in December 2000.
- DoD Report to Congress on Network Centric Warfare, July 2001. Online at the DoD Command and Control Research Program
References
- Polaris (PDF). XXV. Colorado Springs, Colorado: United States Air Force Academy. 1983. p. 459. Retrieved 2021-01-31.
- "GARSTKA John Joseph". U.S. Passport (1442296). June 9, 1962.
- Dawn S. Onley (Apr 27, 2004). "Net-centric approach proven in Iraq". Government Computer News. Retrieved 2010-07-22.
- Flight ’79. Los Angeles, California: Westchester High School. 1979. p. 29.