In this report, the authors analyze the U.S. Space Command’s assigned missions and responsibilities and the potential contributions from reserve component (RC) personnel, and they examine the systems currently in place to document RC requirements, source reserve members from the services, and access and activate these individuals when needed. They recommend a redesign of these systems to align RC support to the needs of non-terrestrial commands.

An Operational Reserve for New Domains

Designing a Selected Reserve Augmentee System for the 21st Century

Stephen Dalzell, Daniel B. Ginsberg, Jonathan Welch, Ryan Haberman

ResearchPublished Jan 30, 2025

To execute its mission, the U.S. Space Command (USSPACECOM) requires highly capable individuals and, like any other large organization, must deal with ebbs and flows in its labor demand. One short- to medium-term solution to maintaining a capable force is to employ service members from the highly skilled reserve components (RCs) of the military services. 

USSPACECOM engaged the RAND National Defense Research Institute to review legislation, policies, and processes for RC requirements and to identify the challenges to fully leveraging this support. In addition to a legal, policy, and process review, the authors carried out interviews with leaders and subject-matter experts within USSPACECOM and other combatant commands (CCMDs), service representatives, and officials who have responsibility for reserve matters within the Office of the Secretary of Defense. 

The authors find that the current systems for validating and sourcing RC support focus on traditional warfighting paradigms and do not adequately account for the different requirements for operating in new domains. They recommend a redesign of these systems to better align RC support with the needs of commands like USSPACECOM.

Key Findings

  • Both the manpower requirements systems and processes and the policies and procedures for accessing and activating personnel often reflect outdated assumptions about RC utilization.
  • The U.S. Department of Defense's process for utilizing reserve personnel is not optimized for CCMDs to take full advantage of RC capabilities.
  • A revised approach to accessing reserve personnel would start with the principles that (1) RC requirements based on plans for warfighting are not inherently more valid than those for other CCMD missions and (2) priority should be given to requirements that support a command's accomplishment of enduring missions directed by higher authorities.

Recommendations

  • The Office of the Secretary of Defense should clarify that valid Selected Reserve augmentation requirements can be found across the spectrum of conflict and may include positions intended to provide low-density or hard-to-maintain skills more efficiently than the use of full-time billets.
  • Senior leaders should reinforce the Selected Reserve augmentation program with strategic communication.
  • USSPACECOM should work with the military departments and the Joint Staff to ensure that the requirements process considers mission areas outside of wartime, including operations other than war, contingency operations, and missions requiring skills and specialties found in the RC.
  • CCMDs should pursue clarification and expansion of the available activation authorities, such as the authority for preplanned mobilization, to support utilization of Selected Reserve augmentation personnel for operational mission areas.
  • The services and CCMDs should examine budgets to ensure that adequate funding is available when the requirements and authorities are in place to use Selected Reserve augmentation across the range of operational requirements.

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Dalzell, Stephen, Daniel B. Ginsberg, Jonathan Welch, and Ryan Haberman, An Operational Reserve for New Domains: Designing a Selected Reserve Augmentee System for the 21st Century. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2025. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1855-1.html.
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This research was sponsored by the United States Space Command and conducted within the Personnel, Readiness, and Health Program of the RAND National Security Research Division.

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