Liveblogging Connections, Day II, Take 3

We've broken into some working groups, and my group is looking forward to Connections 2011.

First part of the discussion: "What is a wargame?"
Second part of the discussion "Who do we want at the next Connections?"
Starting to stumble through some questions that are about to be asked within the briefing, so we're plowing through slides and will get back to the topics of discussions.
Discussion the big questions of "who is the audience" and "how to we find them" and "where do we gather them" to start shaping Connections 2011.

Do you piggy-back on something else, and what happens with the group discussion sessions and intellectual exchange if the doors are too open?

Notes going up on the whiteboard...
Location - ISPI, ASTC, MORS, IITSEC, DC?
Wargame - War? Game? Decision Support?
Attendees - Military, Industry, DoD, Other fed agencies, international?

Looking to capitalize on the 200th anniversary of wargaming.


Has to have a value proposition for how to expand the market. How to you expand the audience? More users for current games? More types of games to expand potential user base?

The Matt Speaketh: What we need at Connections 2011, to help celebrate the anniversary of the wargame...
Can't make it too big or open it up too much or you lose the, uh... "Connections".
Can't make it just the same people over and over or it's intellectually stale.

Pretty intense discussion on what people enjoy based on what was most attended. Were people here to see the person speaking, or were they here because of an inherent interest in the topic?

What's the value proposition of wargaming and what makes it a powerful analytical tool?
How are principles of wargaming used to assess other areas of operations?


Currently arguing over how to define wargaming and what is it? Is it conflict simulation? Is it entertainment? Learning? Part of COA development before completing FRAGO 3 in the MDMP?



discussion is rapidly spiraling into logistics, and much of it is being tabled to future discussions, so I'm unplugging from this for now...

By: Brant