What is APEX?
The APEX Senior Executive Orientation Program provides a high-quality, joint orientation program for new Executives within the Department of Defense
Offered twice a year, the APEX Orientation program is a two-week DoD-wide Executive development opportunity designed to provide newly appointed Senior Executives with both a practical and theoretical understanding of the structure and processes of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Combatant Commands, the Joint Staff, and the Military Departments. Additionally, the program helps new leaders gain an enterprise-wide perspective that encompasses expectations, opportunities and challenges currently facing our DoD leadership.
The program includes one week in Washington, D.C. during which new Executives gain a joint and enterprise perspective from Office of the Secretary of Defense, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Military Department, and Interagency senior leadership. The second week is spent “on the road” at Combatant Commands and selected military installations. This week focuses on exposing the Executives to Service and joint operating concepts and environments.
Objectives
The objectives of the APEX program are to enhance understanding of:
- The structure and processes of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Combatant Commands, the Joint Staff, and the Military Departments as they contribute to the mission of Department of Defense.
- The priorities and challenges of other Federal agencies and the Defense industry as they contribute to National Security in partnership with the Department of Defense.
- The contributions and challenges of the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines within the context of the overarching Defense mission.
- The importance of information sharing and relationship building across the total force through networking opportunities with military and civilian colleagues.
- An enterprise-wide perspective that encompasses leadership expectations and challenges currently facing DoD leaders.
- The changing role of the SES corps within the DoD.
Please note, these objectives are continuously evolving, based on input from class participants and the APEX advisory panel. We welcome your feedback - both on how well the orientation addresses these objectives AND how you would suggest modifying these objectives to better reflect the reality of the Senior Executive Service Corps and its mission. To provide feedback, email APEX@bah.com.