{"id":31896,"date":"2017-12-14T17:44:34","date_gmt":"2017-12-14T17:44:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2017\/12\/14\/new-secnav-report-criticizes-navy-culture-and-top-brass-decisions\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T19:23:56","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T19:23:56","slug":"new-secnav-report-criticizes-navy-culture-and-top-brass-decisions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/digital-show-dailies\/surface-navy-association\/2017\/12\/14\/new-secnav-report-criticizes-navy-culture-and-top-brass-decisions\/","title":{"rendered":"New Navy secretary report criticizes service culture and top brass decisions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The two Navy destroyer collisions that killed 17 sailors this summer were borne from decades of cultural dysfunction in the service, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/partner-mco-archive.s3.amazonaws.com\/client_files\/1513273267.pdf\" title=\"\" class=\"selected-link\" data-original-title=\"\" aria-describedby=\"popover672968\">strategic review<\/a> released this week by Navy Secretary Richard Spencer\u2019s office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The new review also questions an initiative undertaken by today\u2019s top officers for standing up <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navytimes.com\/news\/your-navy\/2017\/11\/02\/navy-stands-up-new-unit-to-oversee-7th-fleet-readiness\/\">a new command<\/a> to oversee readiness in the troubled west Pacific waters of 7th Fleet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Still, the report largely focuses on ending decades of cascading errors leading up to today\u2019s overstretched force, and a failure to learn from mistakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b><\/b>\u201cThe readiness consequences identified in this report are not traceable to any single policy or leadership decision,\u201d according to the report released by Spencer\u2019s office Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHowever, the cumulative effects of well-meaning decisions designed to achieve short-term operational effectiveness and efficiencies have often produced unintended negative consequences which, in turn degraded necessary long-term operational capability.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The report says today\u2019s training and readiness problems have stemmed from a Navy that cannot say no to the mission requests of combatant commanders, despite the Navy\u2019s budget constraints and smaller fleet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOver time, the Navy\u2019s \u2018must do\u2019 wartime culture was adopted for peacetime as long-term readiness and capability were sacrificed for immediate mission accomplishment,\u201d the report states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The review from Spencer\u2019s office sought a higher-level take on service issues than the Navy leadership\u2019s \u201ccomprehensive review,\u201d which was released this fall and overseen by Fleet Forces Command head Adm. Phil Davidson. That report focused on assessing the tactical causes of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navytimes.com\/news\/your-navy\/2017\/08\/17\/fitzgerald-co-other-sailors-to-be-disciplined-in-connection-to-fatal-collision\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Fitzgerald<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navytimes.com\/news\/your-navy\/2017\/10\/11\/navy-fires-john-s-mccain-leadership-calls-fatal-august-collision-preventable\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">John S. McCain<\/a> collisions that killed 17 sailors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The review released from Spencer\u2019s office takes a broader view of the Navy\u2019s problems and was compiled by a group that included retired admirals, junior officers and defense experts, but not any current flag officers. It was headed up by Defense Business Board Chairman Michael Bayer and former Chief of Naval Operations and retired Adm. Gary Roughead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The new review notes that the Navy in the past has claimed to learn important lessons from crises like this year\u2019s ship collisions, but has often failed to implement its own recommendations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cNavy history is replete with reports and investigations that contain like findings regarding past collisions, groundings, and other operational incidents,\u201d the report states. \u201cThe repeated recommendations and calls for change belie the belief that the Navy always learns from its mistakes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/breaking-news\/2017\/11\/02\/navy-finds-deep-rooted-failures-led-to-fatal-collisions\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"192\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/170821-N-OU129-030.JPG.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Navy finds deep-rooted failures led to fatal collisions<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Navy officialdom admits to widespread failures at the core of its most basic function: safely operating ships at sea.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The report decries an over-bureaucratized Navy, where surface warfare officers are not allowed to develop needed expertise because they must pull stints in headquarters positions or other staff jobs to advance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWith the growth of headquarters, and staff centric promotion parameters, staff service began displacing service at sea as a significant driver of officer career paths, assignments, and promotions,\u201d the report states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It also argues that the Navy needs to streamline command-and-control lines because too much bureaucracy has led to \u201cmisaligned authorities, complicated command and control responsibilities, and diffuse accountability structures.\u201d<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Spencer\u2019s report is critical of Navy leadership\u2019s decision in October to create Naval Surface Group West Pacific, another layer of command stood up to oversee 7th Fleet readiness in the West Pacific. Navy admirals said the new command will help eliminate ambiguities of authority, but Spencer\u2019s review this week argues that it will do just the opposite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Strategic Review does not concur with establishment of Naval Surface Group West Pacific,\u201d the report states. \u201cStanding up an additional oversight layer provides another headquarters staff and administrative control function that is likely to perpetuate ambiguous and conflicting authorities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2017\/11\/01\/crushed-in-their-racks-inside-the-john-s-mccain-disaster\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/August-21-Frontlines-1.JPG.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Crushed in their racks: Inside the John S. McCain disaster<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Living quarters rapidly flooded after the McCain collided with an oil tanker on Aug. 21. The 10 sailors who drowned never had a chance to escape.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Spencer acknowledged that the new command is at odds with the report\u2019s call for lesser bureaucracy. \u201cI have to admit, it didn\u2019t dovetail perfectly,\u201d Spencer said at a meeting with reporters at the Pentagon. But he added that such initiatives will be reviewed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m not in a position to say we\u2019re going to tear it apart,\u201d Spencer said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He said his office\u2019s review is only a set of recommendations at this point, and that plans are being hashed out for which prescriptions to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis is a big needle moment for the Navy and Marine Corps,\u201d Spencer said.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Getting the Navy back on sure footing to adequately address the threats posed by so-called \u201cnear peer\u201d military rivals like China \u2014 a conventional threat not seen since the Cold War \u2014 will require changes in everything from service culture to congressional oversight, according to the report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The size of the Navy\u2019s fleet has shrunk from more than 500 ships in the 1990s to about 275 today, yet the workload has largely remained the same, the report states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To continue to fulfill its mission despite fewer ships, the Navy became an echo chamber of risky behaviors, according to the new report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cReinforcing these aberrant behaviors was the feedback that implied the risk being taken had little or no consequence \u2014 if the operation was a success, then the risk assumed must have been appropriate,\u201d the report states. \u201cThe departure from a questioning culture prevented operators, leaders, and resource managers from stepping back and assessing accumulated risk and reinforced a mistaken confidence that operations remained within risk boundaries.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Spencer echoed the report\u2019s recommendations calling on Congress to reassess the Goldwater-Nichols Act, the 31-year-old legislation that stressed the branches operating jointly but took the service chiefs out of the direct chain of command.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Changing that law could offer more direct control and ownership of Navy assets, Spencer said.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2017\/08\/17\/water-on-deck-get-out-the-navys-official-report-of-the-fitzgeralds-catastrophe-at-sea\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"209\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screen-Shot-2017-08-17-at-5.48.43-PM.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">\u2018Water on deck!\u2018 \u2018Get out!\u2018 \u2014 The Navy&#8217;s official report of the Fitzgerald&#8217;s catastrophe at sea<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Sailors had less than a minute to escape as seawater blasted through a massive hole in the destroyer Fitzgerald after a container ship struck its starboard side on June 19.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The report also laments too much congressional oversight, which includes reporting requirements, adherence to at least 20 environmental and safety regulations, as well as state statutes, executive orders and other federal regulations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSuch compliance is resource intensive and frequently distracts leadership\u2019s attention from its primary responsibilities,\u201d the report states. \u201cResponding to ever-increasing National Defense Authorization Act direction, environmental, safety, and acquisition requirements, as well as other legal obligations, requires significantly increasing involvement by the Secretary and the Chief of Naval Operations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The report recommends working with the Pentagon to seek relief \u201cfrom excessively detailed external oversight and reporting requirements.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As the Navy learns to say no, the report recommends the service \u201ccondition congressional and executive branch leaders to accept that the higher cost and time to achieve established readiness standards will mean less Navy presence worldwide.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Spencer also said that the Navy will hold meetings with Congress\u2019s armed services committees to delineate which Navy missions can be jettisoned to prevent overburdening the force, an idea he said lawmakers have voiced support for thus far.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The problems identified by the new report cannot be resolved by simply giving the Navy more money or by ending 2011\u2019s Budget Control Act, often referred to as \u201csequestration.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAdditional funding to increase capacity and maintenance can improve many aspects of readiness, but more money will not address the structural, organizational, training, and cultural facets that contribute just as significantly,\u201d the report states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Spencer said the training and cultural changes called for in the report are not cost-intensive in and of themselves, but also admitted the Navy will need more resources and a better funding and budget mechanism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt\u2019s gonna be a food fight at the table,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Too much bureaucracy, too few ships and a culture that can&#8217;t say no to a mission were cited as key shortcomings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":70140,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":103,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[160,29,11,16,36,103,48],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3483],"class_list":["post-31896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-digital-show-dailies","category-global","category-naval","category-newsletters","category-surface-navy-association","category-the-americas"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"TRY5JOUFUVHSRMY6ECMDADT4BM","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-navy\/2017\/12\/14\/new-secnav-report-criticizes-navy-culture-and-top-brass-decisions\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>New Navy secretary report criticizes service culture and top brass decisions - Defense News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Too much bureaucracy, too few ships and a culture that can&#039;t say no to a mission were cited as key shortcomings.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"New Navy secretary report criticizes service culture and top brass decisions\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Too much bureaucracy, too few ships and a culture that can&#039;t say no to a mission were cited as key shortcomings.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" 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