Feral Jundi

Monday, November 29, 2010

Industry Talk: AEGIS Defence Gets TFBSO Contract In Iraq, EODT Wins FOB Lindsey Deuce Contract In Afghanistan

Filed under: Afghanistan,Industry Talk,Iraq — Tags: , , , , , , , , , — Matt @ 9:52 AM

    This is a quick update on some news with two companies and their contracts won.  If any readers have anything else to add to these two deals, feel free to comment below. –Matt

Contract Award Date: November 16, 2010

Contract Award Number: W91GDW-11-C-9000

Contract Award Dollar Amount: $3,037,880.14 (EST)

Contractor Awarded Name: AEGIS DEFENCE SERVICES LTD

Nov 26, 2010

The contract is to provide all resources, personnel, equipment and management necessary for the technical management, oversight, transportation of Task Force members, and security support of the TFBSO economic revitalization activities performed predominantly in the Baghdad region, or on request to other areas throughout Iraq as required. Security services include security program management, anti-terrorism support and analyses, movement/escort security, transportation support, and close personal protection. The Contractor will provide security advisors and planners to facilitate, coordinate and implement security requirements and contingency plans. The proposed period of performance for this contract will be 68 calendar days or 25 November 2010 – 31 January 2011. The estimated dollar value is $3,343,662.11

FBO link here.

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EODT Awarded Security Contract at Forward Operating Base Lindsey Deuce, Afghanistan

LENOIR CITY, TN (November 29, 2010) – EOD Technology, Inc. (EODT) has been awarded a task order by the Kandahar Regional Contracting Center to perform security services at Forward Operating Base (FOB) Lindsey Deuce in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

Under this task order, EODT will conduct defensive security and surveillance operations designed to protect Coalition Forces. Security operations will be performed within the confines of FOB Lindsey Deuce.

This task order was awarded under the Area of Operations (AO) Mountain Warrior Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract for providing security services in support of Coalition Force missions throughout the Mountain Warrior Area of Operation.

In addition to securing military installations in Afghanistan, EODT provides construction and mine action services, to include demining and battle area clearance, in Afghanistan and other locations worldwide.

Story here.

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Maritime Security: US Navy Using ‘Q-Ships’ And Somalis Guilty Of Piracy In Historic Trial

Filed under: Legal News,Maritime Security,Somalia — Tags: , , , , , , , — Matt @ 8:36 AM

     Three men jumped from a command boat into an open skiff and raced toward the target. They opened fire with AK-47 rifles as they neared the starboard side, hitting a mast and several life lines.

     No one was hurt, and the April 1 incident normally might have drawn little notice. Somali sea bandits have attacked several hundred freighters, tankers and other merchant ships this year. They have successfully hijacked 40 vessels and their crews and held them for ransom.

     But the target this time was the U.S. guided missile frigate Nicholas, disguised to resemble a cargo ship. Navy gunners fired back, and by dawn, commandos had captured five Somalis.

     The last known U.S. trial of a pirate captured overseas was in 1819. During the Civil War, crew members from the Savannah, a Confederate raider, were charged with piracy and tried in New York. But the jury deadlocked, and the rebels later were deemed prisoners of war. 

    There is actually two historic events here.  The first would be the trial itself, but the second would be the first use of ‘Q-ships‘ by the US Navy since World War 2. This last part is incredibly under reported, and hopefully some clarification can be made by the US Navy about this if it is true.

    Or maybe there was a mistake by the reporter below, or this is what the defense claimed in the trial?  Who knows, but it certainly is interesting if true.  It almost makes me wonder if the USS Ashland was set up to be a decoy as well, because Somali pirates fired on that vessel thinking it was a merchant vessel. –Matt

US jury finds Somalis guilty of piracy

November 25, 2010

WASHINGTON — Five Somalis were found guilty of piracy for attacking a US vessel in the Indian Ocean, the first US convictions on such charges in nearly two centuries, the Department of Justice said Wednesday.

A jury in the port city of Norfolk, Virginia found the men guilty of the April attack on the navy frigate USS Nicholas — which they mistook for a merchant vessel — from a small skiff in April.

The ruling marks “what is believed to be the first piracy trial conviction in the United States since 1820,” the US Department of Justice said in a statement.

According to trial testimony, the men sailed from Somalia searching for a merchant ship to raid. “They used a larger ship full of supplies, along with two smaller vessels loaded with assault weapons and a rocket propelled grenade (RPG) that served as attack boats,” the statement read.

On April 1, three of the suspects boarded one of the smaller vessels “and set out to pirate what they believed to be a merchant ship.”

The men opened fire on a ship which turned out to be the Norfolk-based USS Nicholas.

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Thursday, November 25, 2010

Jobs: Security Specialist, Afghanistan

Filed under: Afghanistan,Executive Protection,Jobs,Management Positions — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 9:59 AM

     Ok, just to give a fair warning, this is one of those jobs requiring a little more than just a basic security background or service in the military.  These guys are looking for more of a manager/executive protection specialist type with some pretty extensive qualifications.  But it is the World Bank and they are probably paying a pretty good salary for a position like this.

     I am not the POC for this job, and follow the links below in order to apply.  Good luck and let me know how it goes. –Matt

Job #102307

Job Title Security Spec (Afghanistan)

Job Family General Services

Location Kabul, Afghanistan

Appointment International Hire

Job Posted 22-Nov-2010

Closing Date15-Dec-2010

Language RequirementsEnglish [Essential]

Background/General Description

The position of Security Specialist will be established in the World Bank Country Office in Kabul. The incumbent will serve in a full time capacity and on-call for emergencies. The incumbent will also provide security support to the International Finance Corporation (IFC). While reporting to the Senior Security Specialist, GSDSO, the Security Specialist  will discharge his assignment under the direct authority and guidance of the Country Manager.  Operational support, direction and technical supervision will be provided by the Senior Security Specialist (SSS) , the Global Security Operations Coordinator and the Head of Global Security, World Bank Corporate Security. From time to time there may be a requirement to provide security coverage in other countries in which the WBG operates. The duties of the Security Specialist are to provide security support to World Bank Group country office staff in the following areas:  a) security management; b) security awareness; c) contingency planning; d) protective services. Details of these duties are described below but other responsibilities may be added as needed.

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Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Leadership: Lecture Series–The Art Of Critical Decision Making, By Professor Michael Roberto

Filed under: Cuba,Disaster Response,Industry Talk,Jundism,Leadership,Podcasts,Strategy — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , — Matt @ 11:24 AM

     After the Bay of Pigs failure, President Kennedy and his advisors reflected on their mistakes and created a new process for group discussion and decision making to prevent future groupthink and promote diverse perspectives. Here, Professor Roberto introduces the concept of developing a decision-making process. -From the Lecture ‘Deciding How To Decide’

     This is a great lecture series that a friend of mine hooked me up with, and I highly recommend it. It was engaging and thought provoking, and there were so many cool ideas to take away from this if you are looking for leadership guidance. As I listened to it, there were many Jundism concepts that kept popping up in various forms and examples.

     The particular lecture that I will highlight in this post is the ‘deciding how to decide’ portion.  I took notice, because this method of decision making was born out of the highest levels of leadership during the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Bay of Pigs invasion failure.  The Bay of Pigs invasion was an embarrassing mistake that resulted from poor decision making at the top.  Or what the professor referred to as ‘group think’ (being surrounded by ‘yes men’ and folks unwilling to question the group or leadership out of fear of being wrong or just assuming everyone else is right)

     The Cuban Missile Crisis was an extreme test of wills, and required the best possible strategy that would prevent the US and the Soviet Union wiping each other out with nuclear weapons. President Kennedy devised a system of decision making that would produce the best product or solution possible, that was not a victim of group think.  He used a system of subgroups that would develop solutions independently, then those groups would exchange their solutions with the other groups and critique.

    A second set of devils advocates or eyes would also review the solutions, and further nitpick the possible solutions until the best idea was standing. So this solution was hammered out of truly honest debate, and any influences that would cause people to not speak up was eliminated.  I thought it was an ingenious way of problem solving, and especially during crisis. (be sure to listen to the series to get the specifics on how to set up this system) The situation with North Korea bombing South Korea, and the US and China reaction to it is a prime example of modern day critical decision making with high stakes involved.  How President Obama decides, will really be based more on deciding how to decide first, so that the solution he gets is strategically sound and not at all influenced by group think.

    Military leaders and CEO’s can learn from this as well.  Leaders should strive hard to have honest debate about strategy and it takes listening to your people, and being open to ideas to get there.  It also requires breaking down those walls that limit honest debate, and really being aware of group think and it’s dangers. Check out the series to learn more, and let me know what you think. Also check out Professor Roberto’s blog if you want to follow his ideas or contact him. –Matt

THE ART OF CRITICAL DECISION MAKING

Genre: Audio or video CourseLength: Twenty-four, thirty-minute lecturesTeacher: Prof. Michael Roberto, Bryant UniversityPublisher: The Teaching Company

By Tom Alderman

July 23, 2009

Following the disastrous 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, President Kennedy asked former President Eisenhower to the White House to seek the old soldier’s counsel. The new president wanted to know what he could learn from the whole sorry mess. Instead of the expected military hoo-hah, Ike wanted to know how the decision was made to go ahead with the Cuban invasion? How did the president gather advice from his advisors? Not a surprising question considering the five-star general led a contentious military coalition during World War II, not because of his martial skills, but because of his extraordinary leadership abilities which included understanding the core ingredient in all critical decision making: whether you’re launching a D-Day invasion, a career, a product or service, HOW you decide is more important than WHAT you decide. The process you use determines a successful outcome and if that process is not clear and effective, you’re going down.

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Afghanistan: Government Allows Aid Projects To Employ PSC’s Until Contracts Expire

Filed under: Afghanistan,Industry Talk — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 9:21 AM

     As the stomach turns….. So we go from disbanding the companies by December, to banning them in stages, to now allowing the aid folks to use PSC’s until their contracts expire? What’s next, start over and pretend this never happened? lol

    Another factor that might be driving this decision, besides the obvious ones brought up in the beginning, are the latest moves of some aid companies. That they are now making deals with the Taliban in order to do their thing.

     So what is worse, these groups hiring security or making deals with the Taliban to not attack them?  Even if we were to believe that they are not paying the Taliban, the Taliban are still getting some great PR out of the deal. They look like the ones who are in charge here, and not the Karzai government or coalition. Just one more reason why banning PSCs based on some time line was a bad idea. Instead, get rid of those ‘horrible’ PSC’s through the simple market mechanism called ‘a lack of demand’ and progress in the war effort.-Matt

Afghan official: Government allows aid projects to employ private guards till contracts expire

By Heidi Vogt

23/11/2010

KABUL – Afghanistan will allow armed guards employed by private security companies to continue protecting aid and economic development projects in the country until their current contracts expire, a government official said Tuesday.

The decision comes despite an earlier order that all security companies disband by mid-December.

It also clears up uncertainty that had been hanging over large companies involved with ongoing aid and development projects for the U.S. and other foreign governments since a presidential decree to disband them was issued in August.

Many of the companies had said they would have to cease operations in volatile provinces in the south and east if they could not use private security guards to protect their workers and their projects.

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