Col. Steve Rotkoff

Steve Rotkoff is a former Army Colonel and pioneer in critical thinking and decision-making transformation. As lead intelligence planner for GEN Wesley Clark, he developed ground attack options for Kosovo. He served as Deputy G-2 for all Army and Marine forces during Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003) and commanded a 2,000-soldier brigade. After retiring, Rotkoff created and led the Army's critical and creative thinking program, facilitating six red teams for GEN Dunford as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs—including counter-ISIS strategy and Chinese military capabilities assessments. He authored the Applied Critical Thinking Handbook, the industry standard for red teaming. Rotkoff co-authored Innovative Decision Making in Healthcare (2023) and teaches red teaming at UC Berkeley and Tufts Fletcher School. He holds degrees from West Point, the Naval Postgraduate School, and the School of Advanced Military Studies.