Team Composition Optimization: The Team Optimal Profile System (TOPS)

As Army missions become more complex and diverse, the assignment of personnel to mission and staff teams has become more critical and challenging. Research and tools are needed to help commanders assign personnel to ensure optimal performance. The proposed effort will extend beyond existing staffing approaches to develop a more sophisticated staffing model that incorporates the influence of members’ KSAOs, team dynamics, and mission requirements to optimize team staffing decisions. Based on team composition research and using input from team staffing experts, we will develop an optimization algorithm to aid commanders in making personnel replacement decisions and provide a storyboard prototype of a Team Optimization Profile System tool. An option task will demonstrate the use of this algorithm within a specific domain (e.g., Special Forces). Future phases of the proposed work will include empirical validation of the optimization algorithm, increased use of computational modeling, and enhancements to ensure the tool is easy to use in field settings.