Disciplined Inquiry. Actionable Insights.
Founded in 1983 by General Maxwell Thurman, the Office of Economic and Manpower Analysis, or OEMA, is a Department of the Army research agency co-located with the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. OEMA is a highly expert, multidisciplinary innovation team of soldiers and civilians who teach, publish, and conduct disciplined inquiry to help senior leaders create the Army of tomorrow. In particular, we conduct program evaluation, policy analysis, and problem-solving research to improve existing people programs and to deliver innovative new ones to the Army.
Disruptive Thinking
We use sound research science to help Army leaders make better people decisions.
Our Research Focus
In its early years, OEMA focused on helping to recruit and retain Soldiers for the all-volunteer Army that emerged in the aftermath of the Vietnam War. Over time, however, our portfolio grew to include a broad range of people-related program and policy areas. Today OEMA works to create innovative new people paradigms across the Army’s talent management lifecycle areas: Acquire, Develop, Employ, and Retain. Our research has led to a variety of new Army people innovations, all designed to improve organizational performance and drive Army strategy execution.
Our Clients
While the Army is our number one client, we provide analytical support to a variety of government agencies, to include the Department of Defense, the Social Security Administration, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and others.
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The White House
Office of the Secretary of Defense
Office of the Secretary of the Army
Office of the Under Secretary of the Army
Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army, Manpower and Reserve Affairs
Office of the Chief of Staff of the Army
Office of the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army
Deputy Chief of Staff, Army G1
Officer Candidate School
Army Emergency Relief
Army Recruiting Command
Army Combined Arms Center
Army Human Resources Command
Department of Veterans Affairs
Army Cadet Command
Social Security Administration
Army Training and Doctrine Command
United States Military Academy West Point