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Army Harnesses Creativity of Its Own Ranks
May 10, 2010
Taking a cue from the success of Apps for Democracy, a 2008 contest from the DC government encouraging citizens to leverage DC data, the Department of the Army is looking to its key stakeholders—soldiers and Army civilians—to throw their ideas into the ring for the Apps for the Army (A4A) challenge. The Army is working with iStrategyLabs, who co-created and developed Apps for Democracy, to run A4A.
Improving Army Processes
A4A encourages Army personnel to develop new mobile and web applications that innovate the way the Army fights, trains, and does business, among other challenge categories. A maximum of 100 developer teams can participate for cash prizes totaling $30,000.
Peter Corbett, CEO of iStrategyLabs, explained that A4A is modeled directly on Apps for Democracy, “plus a few additions—specifically, the addition of a cloud computing environment for secure development (RACE), and a fast-track certification and accreditation process through the Communications-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Center—so apps can be deployed to the battlefield or to the business user in weeks instead of several months or more.”
Entries will be judged on six categories that assess each app’s usefulness, usability, appeal, inventiveness, effect, and viability. Forge.mil will serve as the collaborative platform for participants.
A Multi-Phased Effort
A4A is actually the pilot phase of a longer-term effort. Due to its enthusiastic reception, both within the Army and in the general public, future phases may open the challenge up to a broader pool of developers.
“We have begun discussions with the National Guard Bureau on how to expand the challenge to non-deployed National Guard soldiers,” said Marvin Wages, Program Manager for A4A, CIO/G-6. “We are also looking at how to expand the challenge to retirees and family members.”
As of April 29, A4A had 98 distinct projects supported by 120 participants (54 military, 66 civilians), and applications are being developed in every environment—with ASP.Net, Android, and LAMP leading.
“Most participants are driven by a desire to make their jobs easier or more productive. And, they want to share their knowledge and expertise with others in the Army facing similar challenges,” said Wages.
The closing date for A4A is May 15, and winners will be announced in August at the LandWarNet Conference.
