Imagine that the conflict with China that U.S. military officials have been warning about for years is about to erupt. Air Force intelligence experts must scan satellite images for signs of military buildup along the Taiwan Strait, but the artificial intelligence programs needed to analyze all the imagery need urgent improvement.
A new mobile app developed by a team of joint service members could be the solution. GigEagle is like the military version of the civilian app Taskrabbit, allowing users to find individuals who can help them assemble IKEA cabinets, move mattresses, and other temporary handy tasks. But rather than helping you with one-off tasks around the house, GigEagle can help you fine-tune AI algorithms, operate small drones, translate documents, and other short-term or long-term projects (from 4 hours to a year). ) We are looking for people who can do the following. Helps accomplish military missions.
The key factor is speed. Today, it can take hours to write a proposal and months to hire the right person. With GigEagle, users can search for the skills they’re looking for or enter the problem they need to solve, and the app’s AI will match them with ideal candidates in seconds.
“What our team is trying to do is really optimize the utilization of talent. How to identify and hire talent at a speed never before achievable,” said Air Force Brig. Gen. Michael T. McGinley, director of GigEagle, told Air & Space Forces Magazine.
Another important feature of the app is that candidates can list skills outside of their primary military job specialty. This is difficult to track with existing military talent management systems.
“Whether you’re on active duty, in the Guard or in the Reserves, your records only show a fraction of what you actually did,” McGinley said. “So why not photograph the complete person?”
This could be especially useful for reservists and National Guard members who learn program management, data science, user experience, or a wide range of other skills in civilian jobs. GigEagle allows service members to create a LinkedIn-like profile where they can describe their skills, experience, and recommendations.
McGinley first started working on the GigEagle project in 2018, with initial testing beginning in 2022. The app’s six-month prototype phase is scheduled to end in October, followed by a production phase. Over 3,000 service members have signed up and are already solving real-world problems. For example, the Air Force Research Laboratory needed urgent help with generative AI tasks, so McGinley used GigEagle to connect two Army Reservists with the data analysis and AI skills the lab needed within five minutes. I found it.
“They were in shock. How else could they understand something like that,” McGinley said. He added that the Air Force’s new Interim Joint Capabilities Command is already posting gigs on the app.
Currently, members of the National Guard and Reserve of each military service can become gig workers or gig managers. This means that while you can post requirements and gigs, active duty members or military civilians can only be gig managers. But a new pilot program set to begin soon will give active duty military, civilians and military spouses the chance to become gig workers in certain organizations and functional communities.
think big
In 2023, Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, predicted that advances in sensors, robotics, and artificial intelligence would allow us to monitor, redirect, and monitor “fundamental changes in the nature of warfare.” He said it would cause it. Run your decision-to-action (OODA) loop faster than ever before.
That change requires a fundamental shift in military talent to quickly identify and engage people with the skills to solve a rapidly evolving set of problems, McGinley said.
GigEagle is one way to support what is commonly referred to as an agile talent ecosystem. For example, “Instead of one Airman having to do a lot of things, what we can do now is support that Airman with a network of information and expertise.” said.
That network may one day include the entire military, the entire government, industry, academia, and even partner nations.
“Even in a non-conflict situation, if you want to contact radar experts at Caltech or Massachusetts Institute of Technology, you should be able to do that,” he said. “We are exploring different avenues and legal authorities to engage these individuals.”
That includes military spouses, who often struggle to find work amid the frequent movement of military life. The GigEagle team is working with the Office of the Secretary of Defense to develop a SOAR (Spousal Opportunity Access and Recognition) version of the app to help spouses find employment in both the commercial and government sectors. Team members said they expect the first of three efforts to explore that route to begin in 2025.
In addition to matching organizations with talent, GigEagle also helps headquarters-level personnel track trends in talent demand and supply.
“Now we know who’s looking for that talent and what kind of skills they’re looking for,” the general said. For example, “You can indicate that the Army is providing some of the support for this analyst. Why?”
influence
Features like GigEagle may have other benefits as well. In an essay published in War On the Rocks magazine in August of this year, McGinley and his GigEagle partner, Army Maj. Jim Perkins, argued that some service members feel that they want to serve in a meaningful way. He cautioned that they may not always feel like they are working or contributing to the skills that matter most.
GigEagle has the potential to alleviate that itch by first identifying the skills of service members and then allowing them to use those skills to directly help their colleagues solve pressing challenges.
“I think as an airman, if you feel like you have an operational impact on the mission, you’re going to have better retention,” McGinley said. “We’re all in uniform because we believe in the mission. I think when you give people the opportunity to engage more and engage more directly with that mission, magic happens.”
At a time when few Americans know anyone in uniform, this app bridges the gap between civilian and military by giving civilians with critical skills opportunities to serve that weren’t previously possible. It may also be helpful.
“At a strategic level, changing policy means we have a more educated and engaged population,” the general said. “The people in academia and industry who provide support feel like they are part of a team. Win the power competition. ”
assignment
GigEagle shows promise, but there are some obstacles to scaling up. The first is to ensure that all services are easily available.
“To be an agile talent ecosystem, we need to be able to think collaboratively and we need to make sure the language is the same,” McGinley said. “It’s difficult and it’s a challenge because what the Air Force values is different than what the Army, Navy and Marines value.”
Next comes the tricky topic of who pays for gigs offered through GigEagle. It is expected that organizations seeking talent will pay for that talent, but when exchanges occur between services or components, especially in the Guard and Reserve, where talent has its own complex pay and benefits structure. If you do, the process can be complicated. The GigEagle team is working with the Office of the Secretary of Defense to expand funding authority to improve inter-service gig payments.
“For example, if I have an Air Force budget to recruit from the Air Force Reserve, but the best candidate for my job and needs matches up with the Army Guard, I have an Air Force budget to pay for the specialist. We need additional authority to transfer funds, and we need someone who happens to be in the Army,” explained Col. Beth Hollein, GigEagle policy team leader.
The team also needs to come up with guardrails to keep the gig from getting in the way of the service member’s primary mission. McGinley said service members need supervisor approval to perform live, but each service may have different rules and requirements for how members use their time.
excitement
Despite the challenges, enthusiasm for the new app is growing. Lt. Col. Chuck Kubik, GigEagle product team leader, said the team is already widely adopted by combat forces.
“These people are coming to this platform because instead of posting roles in six different systems, they can come together in one place to find the best talent,” he explained. “Work is swamping the entire combatant command.”
The U.S. Special Operations Command joint leadership team was especially excited after Kubik was briefed recently.
“They were blown out of the water and were like, ‘Oh my god, where have I been? This is exactly what we need to find the best people,'” he recalled.
Kubik believes the widespread interest shows he and his team are on to something special.
“The buzz and excitement about what GigEagle is is growing rapidly because there has been very little marketing,” he said. “People see this and are like, ‘Yeah, I can’t wait to create my profile.’ As soon as they see that, there’s nothing to hold them back. That was really exciting.”
