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Mission Command Essay

1336 Words6 Pages

Success in armed conflict does not happen without the challenge of overcoming opposition and adversity. In any instance of armed conflict, there is a requirement on both sides to remain resilient and continually adapt to any unanticipated obstacles and mission deviations. Accurate intelligence, adaptive planning, and collaborative capabilities of the forces executing the mission have a direct impact on whether dominance will be established over the enemy. Ultimately, the victor in war is the group that has superior resilience and adaptability affected by informed, responsive, and expeditious tactical planning and collaboration. Army doctrine guides these qualities in the principles of mission command. A clear illustration of the importance …show more content…

No plan can account for every possibility, and most plans must change rapidly during execution to account for changes in the situation” (Headquarters, Department of the Army, ADP 6-0 Mission Command 2019). The mission command approach is designed to support leaders and troops in situations like Operation Anaconda. In this case, the most effective methods to collect intelligence were applied, however, factors outside of their control yielded inaccurate information which was then gathered and utilized for planning. The key principles embedded in mission command are competence, mutual trust, shared understanding, commander's intent, mission orders, disciplined initiative, and risk assessment (Headquarters, Department of the Army, ADP 6-0 Mission Command 2019). These key principles are not designed to direct the specific steps in how to accomplish the mission (Headquarters, Department of the Army, ADP 6-0 Mission Command 2019), but instead, act more as guidelines to support leaders’ decision-making and provide the opportunity for adaptability in the chaos of …show more content…

Reliance on external militant friendly forces attributed to several significant mission command weaknesses. Competence, mutual trust, and shared understanding were principles that almost prevented the United States' victory in this case. Upon reflection, these are lessons learned and “serve as a cautionary tale for Americans convinced that our technological superiority is a foolproof defense against the element of surprise in the mountains of Afghanistan, the streets of Baghdad or on any other future battlefield” (Naylor, 2003). Successful completion of the “Hammer and Anvil” method was reliant on the competence of friendly Afghan forces, who ultimately were unorganized, untrained, and operated under their authority (Kugler, 2007). Mutual trust and shared understanding were the most preventable of the mission command weaknesses. Improved and unified communication efforts and shared understanding of authority would have reduced confusion and streamlined effective

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Analyzing the mission command principles and the commanding officer’s actions will also be discussed. Specifically, as it relates to building a cohesive team through mutual trust, providing a clear commander’s intent, and accepting prudent risk. While the battle of Fort Riviere and the resulting occupation of Haiti occurred over a century ago, it provides us with an example of American foreign policy during this period and bares resemblance to future American military

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1542 Words | 7 Pages

On July 30, 2008, a bloody battle involving Coalition forces took place in the mountainous eastern Afghan province of Nuristan. This was the Battle of Wanat and the devastating amount of Coalition casualties began a vigorous investigation by the United States Army. The village of Wanat, defended by Second Platoon, Chosen Company, Second Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team would fall victim to numerous bad decision made by higher command. Although the men of Chosen Company fought hard, they ended up surrounded, vastly outnumbered, and without any Battalion assets. This paper will argue the reasons for the disastrous outcome of the Battle of Wanat; examining the effective company leadership exploiting effective

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1069 Words | 5 Pages

Principles Of Mission Command: Operation Anaconda. SSG Alicea-Sevilla, Manuel Army Sustainment University SLC: 91/94 CMF Class 23-024 SFC Hercules & Mr. Burger Date:20230428 Introduction/Abstract The essay analyzes the application of the seven command principles by the United States military during Operation Anaconda in Afghanistan in 2002. Primarily, an analysis on General Hagenbeck's operational leadership and decision-making through the lens of the seven command principles to evaluate the extent to which he adhered to them.

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944 Words | 4 Pages

Giving commanders the freedom to act within the purpose of a higher command enabled commanders to respond quickly to changes on the battlefield. I will explain how incorporating mission command principles during Operation Anaconda helped the mission's success.

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Joint Planning for Operation Anaconda SFC Spurlock, Matthew MLC Class 005-18 Joint Planning for Operation Anaconda Since the beginning of the Global War on Terrorism, there have been numerous battles. One of the most important battles that shaped future joint planning of operations was Operation Anaconda. The outcome of this operation was ultimately successful, however, the original intent from the commanders were not met due to errors in the joint planning process. Joint planning during Operation Anaconda proved ineffective because of inaccurate intelligence about the terrain and weather, the exemption of Air Force and Navy during the initial planning phase, and false assumptions about the enemy. Intelligence Intelligence Preparation

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2222 Words | 9 Pages

Leaders at all levels of the Army are faced with difficult decisions every day, decisions that can affect the lives of everyone around them. The thought processes used by individual leaders to make decisions can be as far reaching as their imagination; however, it is every leader’s responsibility to make these decisions using the tenants of mission command. Mission command is not an easy skill to master, however great leaders understand it and the proper use of it when planning a mission. Mission command is broken down into six major principles: Build cohesive teams through trust, create a shared understanding, provide a clear commanders’ intent, exercise-disciplined initiative, use mission orders and accept prudent risk . General Douglas

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1800 Words | 8 Pages

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1353 Words | 6 Pages

Realizing the need, Major General Petraeus soon began to employ the division to work local nationals to restart water and electricity and working to reopen schools (Lundberg, 2008). Lacking any guidance from his leadership, Petraeus took many prudent risks in order to further see these plans through by utilizing his own assets. For example, according to Lundberg, he utilized assets such as Army engineers to begin clearing rubble and debris from cities, villages, and roadways. Conclusion Providing a strong leadership approach and willingness to take risk, Major General Petraeus was put on a mission to develop and implement strategy to establish stability in Mosul, Iraq.

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Staff Sergeant Montano was vital in the planning, leadership, and execution of more than four major computer network operations, covering a span of two years against high-priority Counter-ISIS nodes of interest worldwide in direct support of national intelligence objectives. These operations included two of the largest and most complex cyber operations in USCYBERCOM history. For all of these efforts, Staff Sergeant Montano was the key leader who made it possible for USCYBERCOM to achieve what had only been imagined for years. He excelled at skillfully taking an idea for an operation and turning it into an executable

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Returning to the 4th Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT) to assume command as the brigade commander brings me much joy to be reunited with great Non-Commission Officers and Officers that I have previously served with. Unfortunately, this brigade is no longer the brigade I remember when I commanded a battalion within the 4th ABCT not so long ago. In the last 30 days, I have had the opportunity to observe the ABCT and review a multitude of historical documents to assess the state of the brigade. During my observation, I believe the critical leadership problem in the 4th ABCT’s is the lack of vision for the brigade. Therefore, this critical problem has led to other challenging issues within the brigade.

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1475 Words | 6 Pages

Therefore, he dispatched his 2nd Brigade Commander, Colonel Anderson, to gather as much information as possible, assess the situation, then report back describing the conditions in order for Major General Petraeus to lead, and direct his units in Mosul. This paper explores the aspects he used to lead, direct, and assess the 101st Airborne Division in Mosul. Moreover, how General Petraeus was able to utilize artful

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1128 Words | 5 Pages

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.

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778 Words | 4 Pages

And the fact the book talks a lot about how the military has lost so many times due to strategic planning that has led to defeat. Seeing this now allows future leaders to know how to lead and to not cause casualties’ when it could possibly be prevented. In the book we Linn tells us how American leaders in the military assumed and therefore ended up in the wrong warfare. For example, Linn stated that: “During the Cold War, when many Americans believed they faced nuclear annihilation or communist dictatorship, the dangers posed a century earlier seemed insubstantial” (Linn, 2007).

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The increasing concern of global warming is pushing governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The Alberta government recently put into effect a carbon tax to combat increasing emissions. They also plan on phasing out coal-fired electricity generation by 2030 with renewable resources. Should the Alberta government look to nuclear fission to replace the coal plants they are shutting down? What is the cost of building a new plant and how many do we need?

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In order to learn more about military mind we can take a look at the United States Army; Warrior Ethos which are: i. I will always place the mission first. ii. I will never accept defeat. iii. I will never quit.

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