If every nail looks different, you need different hammers: Modeling civil-military interaction

In the response to emergencies and disasters, effective cooperation and information exchange between military and civil actors is essential. However, in practice, the quality of civil-military interaction (CMI) leaves much to be desired. Our research takes an engineering approach, which is complementary to most behavioral-oriented research in the CMI domain. In particular, we seek to support CMI processes with innovative Information Technology solutions. To this end, we are developing a comprehensive conceptual model of the CMI domain, which is currently lacking. This paper contributes to its development by investigating candidate technologies and defining CMI domain model requirements. Exploiting these requirements as criteria, we have evaluated three modeling methods and languages, i.e. the Unified Modeling Language (UML), the Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) and the Design and Engineering Methodology for Organizations (DEMO). Based on the comparative study, we conclude that a combination of these is required for modeling the CMI domain.