Joint Level Commander Intent

Ulysses S. Grant, 1861-1863 The paper conducts a chronological examination of the impact operational education and experience had towards the rise of U.S. Grant as an operational commander, focusing on involvement during the initial two years of the American Civil War in the Western (Mississippi) Theater. The origins of Union Strategy, and Grant's evolution as an operational commander, is seen through operational experiences in early Civil War battles at Belmont, Forts Henry and Donelson, Shiloh, and Vicksburg. Discussion cites the complementary nature of a firm moral foundation towards credibility as an operational leader and commander, highlighting experience as a key in the commander's education in balancing the operational factors of time,

Operation Anaconda: Analytical Paper of Principles of Mission Command According to APD 6-0: Mission Command (2019), the definition of mission command is “The Army’s approach to command and control that empowers subordinate decision making and decentralized execution appropriate to the situation.” (p.Glossary 3) This approach by the Army is used on a daily basis at various times during countless operations and missions. One of the operations where mission command was used was Operation Anaconda.

Air Forces, initially seen as something other than an essential part of the operation. General Franks and General Mikolashek needed competence in their subordinate commander General Hagenbeck to give him the leverage he needed to make command decisions. Therefore, the military forces must devise a new plan without veering from the commander's intent. This new plan consisted of massive air strikes to support U.S. Army forces in the valley. Having a shared understanding as defined in ADP 6-0 (2019) paragraph 1-38, commanders and staffs actively create shared understanding throughout operations (planning, preparation, execution, and assessment).

Mission orders are utilized by commanders to delineate the end state of a mission through broad guidance. It is not used to direct subordinates on how to achieve the objectives. War is not a static phenomenon, but is rather dynamic. Plans need flexibility to allow subordinate commanders the adaptability necessary to adjust as the enemy reacts.

Military leaders must understand the enemy and enemy movements. With planning you must find not only the strengths and weaknesses of your own men but the enemy as well. This is must in order to achieve a strategic advantage by controlling strategic points or areas in war. For example, the first two operations for Easy Co., Operation Overload and Operation Market Garden where the mission was to drop troops behind enemy lines along the Normandy Coastline and the Netherlands respectively, to secure roads, bridges and areas considered by the Allies to be of tactical importance. A military leader’s first job is to execute planning phase where they must identify locations that must be controlled even before the first bullet is fired.

The CJCS also outlines and writes the National Military Strategy provided to Combatant Commanders as military context and translation of the National Defense

Subordinates may fail to recognize the order given by a superior. In a worst-case scenario, the superior may not heed the concerns brought up by a man under his control resulting in an accident. It is imperative that all parties carefully consider all statements made in an indirect manner to ensure that no instructions, expectations, or tasks have slipped through the cracks. In other societies around the world, the most accepted idea to giving orders is that the less instruction given the better. This is believed to show that the individual is mature, intellectual, capable of reading into a situation, while also seeing the higher purpose.

This encompasses objectives in time and space, resources, purpose, and action. These provide the framework for: Decisive Operations, Shaping Operations, and Sustaining Operations (ADRP 5-0, 2012). Rapidly Changing Visualization The extremely unstable conditions, coupled with the sudden change from combat operations to sustainment operations, resulted in a rapidly changing and dynamic operational environment. It was imperative that the 101st be seen as an army of liberation, not occupation.

Clear concise policy guidelines on the use of military force need to formulated. Our national interests will clash with the national interests of other countries or groups; we must be committed to following through with defending our policies, or we further loose our national

The purpose of this paper is, therefore, to indicate what benefit it has to me of gaining knowledge of US Army Mission Command. It helps me in my future (international) duty assignments the following graduation from the Sergeants Major Course (SMC). Multinational Collaboration In the contemporary Land Operations, we collaborate with international partners and non-governmental organizations. The key is Manoeuvrist Approach and Mission Command (Afdeling Land Warfare, 2014).

position, however, the strain between the ranks compounded. In his book Company Commander, historian Charles B. MacDonald described his experience as a newly commissioned captain to a combat-experienced regiment during the Battle of the Bulge. Early in the campaign, after his first engagement as the company’s commander, MacDonald recalled, “I wondered what the men of my headquarters group thought of me as a company commander now? Had I been a complete failure?

By definition, “mission command is the exercise of authority and direction by the commander using mission orders to enable disciplined initiative within the commander’s intent to empower agile and adaptive leaders in the conduct of unified land operations,” according to ADRP 5-0. Mission command is about knowing when to change the task to fit the purpose. This paper is intended to analyze the mission command of one side of the battle, focusing on the commander’s role in the operations process. The Battle of Bunker Hill was the most important battle of the American Revolution because of Colonel Prescott’s superior command and control.

The life of a soldier is something most civilians could not truly understand. To have to put your life completely in another man’s hands, whether it be you commander or squadmate, takes great discipline and courage. Every day a soldier is in active duty, he is depending on those around him to do their job: any slip up, and he could end up dead, wounded, or captured. Danger lurks around every corner, so a soldier must be on his toes; both to save his life and the lives of others. A soldier must learn to follow orders to the letter or else he risks endangering his comrades.

Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer executed poor mission command during the Battle of Little Bighorn by failing to create a shared understanding of the operational environment and exercise disciplined initiative. Custer was the commander of a battalion in the Battle of Little Bighorn during the Indian Wars1. Little Bighorn was the location of a nomadic village of Lakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes2. Custer approached the unified Indian village with his force of nearly 650 men from the east and south to act as a hammer. Following Custer’s advance, additional infantry and cavalry approached from the north to act as a blocking force or anvil in support of Custer's movements2.

SNC delivered a clear and accurate five paragraph order minimizing the use of filler words and briefing the order with a confident and authoritative tone. SNC rendered particular attention to the Size and Activity portions of the Enemy Situation. SNC’s initial plan was unclear and included phrases such as “most likely”. SNC overcame the deficiencies of his initial plan and issued specific tasks to subordinates. SNC effectively lead from the front and developed creative solutions to problems as points of friction arose.