Every profession has its own set of acronyms unique to its trade. The military are notorious for them, and indeed the civilian humanitarian community has more than a mouthful in their alphabet soup.  Yet, in the field of civil-military relations, there is one particular acronym that provides a critical link between the two communities, namely the SME.

When you conduct a search for SME on acronymfinder.com, 27 hits appear ranging from School of Military Engineering and Squadron Medical Element (two of the military's own) to Small and Medium Enterprise, Solar Mesophere Explorer and Sloppy Meat Eaters (apparently a band). However, the SME of importance to COE (the Center of Excellence, not the Army Corps of Engineers!) is the Subject Matter Expert.

Given the broad scope of programs that COE supports to facilitate civil-military cooperation, it would be virtually impossible, and prohibitively expensive, to employ enough of the right kind of people full-time. SMEs provide the needed depth and flexibility to enable COE to offer services and programs tailored to different target audiences.

In the education and training arena, the inclusion of skilled practitioners from the humanitarian relief and human rights communities in what were traditionally military-to-military exercises or seminars provides a more realistic, on the ground perspective that greatly facilitates learning and interaction. Their input, as well as that of experienced professionals such as civilian police, military observers, legal experts and host government responders help to create a panoramic overview of what can be expected in the field or mission area where the various communities may intersect.

Seasoned experts lie not only at the heart of an effective response to complex emergencies but also at the crossroads of civil-military relations. In the field as in the class-room, personalities can play a key role in effective communication. For this important reason, SMEs must rely on more than experience; they must be able to successfully convey that experience as educators.

SMEs may also be called on to provide valuable input into the development of new technology. By helping to populate databases and structure interfaces, they ensure maximum utility of these innovative tools, which enable practitioners to respond and communicate more effectively. Behind the scenes, technology SMEs such as application engineers and software/database developers continually work to expand the number and quality of tools in the responders' toolbox.

From the classroom to the cutting edge, three simple letters represent a vast wealth of knowledge and give COE the ability to augment its staff to support a variety of civil- military projects and programs worldwide, which otherwise it could not do.

Up to top