Operations Process Flashcards
What does the operations process constitute for the army?
The army’s view on planning, executing, and assessing operations.
What does the operations process account for?
The complex, ever-changing, and uncertain nature of operations and recognizes that a military operation is foremost a human undertaking.
What is the army’s framework for exercising mission command?
The operations process
What are the major command activities performed during operations?
1) planning
2) preparing
3) executing
4) continuously assessing the operation
What is planning?
The art and science of understanding a situation, envisioning a desired future and laying out effective ways of bringing that future about.
What is preparing?
The activities performed by units and soldiers to improve their ability to execute an operation.
What is execution?
Putting a plan into action by applying combat power to accomplish the mission.
What is assessing?
The continuous determination of the progress toward accomplishing a task, creating an event, or achieving an objective.
How do commanders use the operations process?
Through the support of their staff, commanders use the operations process to drive the conceptual and detailed planning necessary to understand, visualize, and describe their operational environment, make and articulate decisions and direct, lead, and assess military operations.
What are the 4 principles that guide the operations process?
1) commanders drive the operations process
2) apply critical and creative thinking
3) build and maintain situational understanding
4) encourage collaboration and dialog
What happens upon completion of the initial order?
Planning continues as leaders revise the plan based on changing circumstances.
What is the staffs role during the operations process?
To assist commanders with understanding situations, making and implementing decisions, controlling operations and assessing progress
What other function does the staff perform during the operations process besides assisting the commander?
Staff assists subordinate units and keeps units and organizations outside the headquarters informed throughout the operations process
What ATTP discusses the duties and responsibilities of the staff in detail?
ATTP 5-0.1
During the operations process, what does the mission command require?
An environment of mutual trust and shared understanding among commanders, staffs, and subordinates.
What type of command climate is required?
One where commanders encourage subordinates to accept prudent risk and exercise disciplined initiative to seize opportunities and counter threats within the commanders intent.
What allows subordinates the greatest possible freedom of action?
Commanders focusing their instruction on the purpose of the operation rather than the details of how to perform assigned tasks.
What does the philosophy of mission command do?
Guides commanders, staffs, and subordinates as they plan, prepare, execute and assess operations.
How do commanders organize and train their staffs and subordinates?
As an integrated team to simultaneously plan, prepare, execute, and assess operations.
How do commanders drive the operations process?
Through understanding, visualizing, describing, leading, and assessing operations.
What does it mean to understand something?
To grasp its nature and significance.
What is an operational environment?
Influences the affect the employment of capabilities and bear on the decisions of the commander.
What does ADP 5-0 cover?
Operations process
What is the commanders visualization?
The mental process of developing situational understanding, determining a desired end state and envisioning an operational approach by which the force will achieve that end state
What are four ways commanders express their visualization?
1) commanders
2) planning guidance including an operational approach
3) commanders critical information requirements
4) essential elements of friendly information
What is the commanders intent?
Clear and concise expression of the purpose of the operation and desired military end state that supports mission command, provides focus to the staff, helps subordinate commanders act to achieve the commanders desired results without orders, even when the operation does not unfold as planned.
What does the commanders planning guidance provide?
It conveys the essence of their visualization
What does effective planning guidance provide?
It broadly describes when, where, and how the commander intends to employ combat power to accomplish the mission within the higher commanders intent
What does CCIR stand for?
Commanders critical information requirements
How do commanders use CCIR?
To focus information collection on the relevant information the need to make critical decisions throughout the conduct of operations
What are the 2 components of CCIR?
Friendly force information requirements and priority intelligence requirements
What does EEFI stand for?
Essential elements of friendly information
What does EEFI identify?
Elements of friendly force information that, if compromised, would jeopardize mission success.
What are 7 ways commanders can direct forces throughout the operations process?
1) preparing and approving plans and orders
2) establishing command and support relationships
3) assigning and adjusting tasks, control measures, and task organization
4) positioning units to maximize combat power
5) positioning key leaders at critical places and times to ensure supervision
6) allocating resources to exploit opportunities and counter threats
7) committing the reserve as required
How does a commander show leadership?
By providing purpose, direction and motivation to subordinate commanders, staff, and soldiers
In what way must a commander balance their time?
Between leading the staff through the operations process and providing purpose, direction, and motivation to subordinate commanders and soldiers away from the command post.
Why do commanders continuously assess the situation?
To better understand current conditions and determine how the operation is progressing
What is situational understanding?
The product of applying analysis and judgment to relevant information to determine relationships among the operational and mission variables to facilitate decision-making
What do commanders and staffs use to help build their situational understanding?
Use the operational and mission variables
What are the 8 interrelated operational variables that commanders and staff use to analyze and describe an operational environment?
1) political
2) military
3) economic
4) social
5) information
6) infrastructure
7) physical environment
8) time
Also known as PMESII-PT
What does METT-TC stand for?
Mission, enemy, terrain and weather, troops and support available, time available, and civilian considerations (mission variables)
What is critical thinking?
Purposeful and reflective judgement about what to believe or what to do in response to observations, experience, verbal or written expressions, or arguments
What does critical thinking lead to?
To new insights, novel approaches, fresh perspectives, and new ways of understanding and conceiving things
