NCOW is an information-enabled concept of operations that generates increased combat power by networking sensors, decision makers, and shooters.
In essence, network-centric warfare translates information superiority into combat power by effectively linking knowledgeable entities in the battlespace.
NCOW is the result of a long history of United States Department of Defense systems acquisition where each acquisition program independently developed redundant and incompatible systems.
These weaknesses were identified in a number of Government Accountability Office audits and prompted the passage of the Clinger-Cohen Act, establishment of the Global Information Grid, and establishment of the DoD Architecture Framework as a part of the business transformation mission of the Department of Defense.
The net-centric model is the overarching enterprise architecture for information technology systems within DoD.