Leadership During Operations PDF

Chapter 8 Leadership During Operations Success ultimately rests on small things, lots of small things. Leaders have to have a feel for small things – a feel for what is going on in the depths of an organization where small things reside....

Chapter 8 Leadership During Operations Success ultimately rests on small things, lots of small things. Leaders have to have a feel for small things – a feel for what is going on in the depths of an organization where small things reside. General Colin Powell This chapter describes basic doctrine for combat leadership. It begins with a discussion of the art of command, and it describes the impact of a commander’s competence, presence, decision making during operations, and risk acceptance. It then describes the role of commanders in driving the operations process. The chapter concludes with a discussion on how leaders adapt their formations for missions while developing junior leaders and teams. THE ART OF COMMAND AND THE COMMANDER 8-1. The commander’s chief responsibilities during operations are to develop effective tactics and to lead and direct the unit in executing them. Soldiers want and willingly follow leaders who win. The most important quality for commanders or other leaders, however, is competence. Good leaders understand tactics, the abilities of their own and enemy units, what is possible in any situation. Combined arms competence is the combat commander’s greatest contribution to winning. Effective commanders lead and inspire their subordinates to fight and win based upon that competence, while ensuring unity of purpose and unity of effort. They do this through a combination of processes, the staffs and subordinate leaders they empower, and their personal example and influence. While the commander is the primary leader of a formation, all leaders play an important role in carrying out their higher echelon commander’s intent as they provide command and control (C2) to their own subordinates during operations. 8-2. Commanders and their subordinate leaders determine success or failure through the decisions they make, the examples they set, the actions they inspire, and their will to win. The commander is the focal point for the employment of staff processes that inform the judgment critical for rapid, effective decision making. Commanders must possess the confidence and skill to rapidly make difficult decisions, accepting risk to create and exploit fleeting opportunities. They conceive and implement sound operational and tactical solutions with the speed and force necessary to win. They also seek staff officers and subordinates who are proficient at their specialties and use them to make the unit tactically effective. 8-3. Commanders have a moral responsibility to ensure their units are prepared for combat. They prepare them through realistic training that reinforces individual and small-unit task and battle drill proficiency, collective proficiency in the execution of mission essential tasks under the most demanding conditions, and the development of staffs able to integrate the warfighting functions and joint capabilities in combined arms approaches against enemy forces. Commanders resource training and protect subordinates’ training time. They establish the command climate within their unit, direct staff and subordinates during operations, and continually assess all aspects of their performance. They build trust, develop their subordinates’ competence and confidence, encourage subordinate commanders to think critically, and demand that they demonstrate initiative within the commander’s intent. Lastly, they prepare subordinates to assume responsibility one and two echelons above their current assignment so that they can effectively assume control of the larger formation when required to because of casualties or lost communications. 8-4. Commanders make decisions informed by judgment grounded in their experience, expertise, intuition, and self-awareness. Judgment is the single most important leadership attribute applicable to selecting the critical time and place to act, assigning missions, prioritizing, managing risk, and allocating resources. 01 October 2022 FM 3-0 8-1 Chapter 8 Thorough knowledge of military science, a strong ethical sense, and an understanding of enemy and friendly capabilities across domains form the basis of the judgment required of commanders. Judgment becomes more refined as commanders become more experienced, and good judgment becomes even more essential in ambiguous or uncertain operational environments. Self-awareness and experience help commanders become more expert about assessing situations and receiving assistance from their staffs. Self-awareness is required to assess one’s self and to earn the trust of those one commands. Judgment allows commanders to distinguish between risk acceptance essential to successful operations and potentially disastrous rashness. The commander’s judgment and experience help shape information requirements and staff priorities during operations. Subordinate commanders and staffs collaborate to provide the most relevant information in the most effective format for the commander to make sound decisions. APPLYING THE ART OF COMMAND 8-5. Command is more art than science because it requires commanders exercise their judgment, leverage their experience, and use their intuition when leading their units. Commanders apply the art of command by providing leadership, delegating authority, allocating resources, and making decisions. Subordinates operating within the commander’s intent facilitate unity of effort to create and exploit relative advantages. Higher echelon leaders provide subordinate echelons access to information and the authority to use Army and joint multidomain capabilities through delegation. Leaders delegate appropriate authority to subordinates based on an assessment of their competence, talents, and experience. COMMANDER PRESENCE ON THE BATTLEFIELD One of the most valuable qualities of a commander is a flair for putting himself in the right place at the right time. Field Marshal Sir William Slim 8-6. Commanders provide leadership in combat to inspire their Soldiers, especially in challenging situations. Command presence is the influence commanders have on those around them, through their physical presence, communications, demeanor, and personal example. Commanders establish command presence through personal interaction with subordinates, either physically or virtually through C2 systems, and demonstrating their character, competence, dignity, strength of conviction, and empathy prior to and throughout operations. 8-7. Commanders go where they can best influence operations, assess units, and improve unity of effort. Where commanders place themselves on the battlefield is one of the most important decisions they can make. Commanding forward allows commanders to effectively assess and manage the effects of operations on their formations through face-to-face interactions. It allows them to gather information about actual combat conditions, but it must be balanced against the requirement to be where the best overall situational awareness can be maintained for the entire formation. As far as operational conditions allow, leadership should be exercised up front at critical times and places without interfering with subordinate leader prerogatives, becoming unreachable by other elements of the unit, or making it simpler for the enemy to target multiple echelons of leadership in one place. 8-8. At the battalion level and below, commanders lead by personal example, acquire much information themselves, and communicate face to face with those they direct. Typically, they position themselves well forward to influence the main effort during different phases of an operation. However, even at these levels, commanders cannot provide direct leadership for their whole unit given the challenges of maintaining continuous communications when units are dispersed or in contested electromagnetic environments. 8-9. At higher levels, echeloned command posts are central to effective C2. During operations, commanders must assess the situation up front as often as possible without being disruptive to the focus of subordinate commanders. They deliberately plan and organize their C2 approach to mitigate their loss of broad situational understanding during battlefield circulation by the development of subordinate commanders, and staff officers empowered to make decisions on the commander’s behalf to exploit opportunities and respond to changing circumstances without needing to ask permission. 8-2 FM 3-0 01 October 2022  Leadership During Operations 8-10. Commanders convey importance and focus the efforts of the command by how they communicate, regardless of where they are physically located. A calm and authoritative tone of voice generates a sense of presence, as does a crisp and efficient manner of providing guidance; both require practice to master. No matter their location, effective commanders encourage their troops, sense their morale, and inspire through personal example. Commanders balance the risk of commanding forward with necessity to build trust by depending upon subordinates to accurately report and demonstrate initiative in their portion of an area of operations (AO). Lieutenant General Eichelberger’s actions to identify and address problems faced by the 32d Infantry Division in Buna in 1942 provide an effective example of commanding forward. Commanding Forward—LTG Eichelberger at Buna In autumn 1942, U.S. forces were attempting to establish positions from which to drive the Japanese from New Guinea and the adjacent islands. The 32d Infantry Division was to eliminate Japanese positions near the village of Buna. By the end of November, however, the division had made little progress, and General Douglas MacArthur sent Lieutenant General Robert Eichelberger, I Corps commander, there to correct the situation. Eichelberger’s instructions were to “remove all officers who won’t fight [and]... if necessary, put sergeants in charge of battalions and corporals in charge of companies.” Eichelberger and his staff arrived on 2 December and were disturbed by what they observed: Soldiers were suffering from a number of tropical diseases. Rations were scant. There was little discipline or military courtesy. Morale was low. Organization was very poor. Only a few Soldiers were at the front line; many were in the rear areas, sent there initially to recover from illness or injury, but now under no one’s effective control. Fearing the jungle, Soldiers were afraid to patrol and, consequently, did not know the location of Japanese positions. Leadership at all levels was ineffective. Eichelberger moved quickly to address these problems. He had supplies flown in and distributed so that Soldiers became better fed, clothed, and medically treated. He stopped offensive operations for two days to reestablish effective C2. Patrols were sent out nightly, and Japanese positions identified. Several commanders, including the division commander, were replaced with officers who could instill a more disciplined and aggressive attitude. Eichelberger was frequently near the front, wearing his rank openly to show his Soldiers their commander was present. In addition to demonstrating to his men that he was willing to share the same risks, Eichelberger was able to observe battlefield conditions personally, leading to better commander’s visualization. By 3 January 1943, after a series of resolute—albeit costly—attacks, the 32d Infantry Division had overcome organized resistance at Buna. Eichelberger’s actions reversed the tide of battle in the theater. From a collection of demoralized units, he created a fighting force that stopped the Japanese advance. 8-11. Physical presence allows commanders to gain firsthand appreciation for the situation that they can rarely gain any other way. Face-to-face discussions in their own or subordinate command posts and forward presence allow commanders to see things that may not be conveyed by C2 systems. Forward presence demonstrates a willingness to share danger and hardship, and it provides an opportunity to motivate subordinates. Commanders should avoid putting their subordinates at additional risk when they are forward, however, since the enemy is likely to quickly target senior commanders when their location becomes obvious. The same consideration applies to their own command posts, which should disperse their footprint and reposition often enough to complicate enemy targeting. The following factors, common to all levels of command, may influence where commanders position themselves: z The need to understand the situation. z The need to make decisions. 01 October 2022 FM 3-0 8-3 Chapter 8 z The need to communicate. z The need to motivate subordinates. 8-12. Commanders delegate authorities to subordinate leaders for the conduct of operations based upon their judgment of their capabilities. This allows the commander to be elsewhere, potentially in a location that permits broader perspective and understanding. It also enables faster decision making in contested environments than if both leaders were in the same location, and it prevents the need for continuous communication. Continuous communication allows enemy forces to detect and target commanders, subordinates, and command posts. It should be avoided whenever possible. Exercising a mission command approach to C2 and delegating the broadest possible authorities to subordinate leaders empowers them to exploit opportunities and conduct more effective distributed operations. COMMANDER’S INTENT 8-13. The commander’s intent is a clear and concise expression of the purpose of an operation and the desired objectives and military end state (JP 3-0). The commander’s intent succinctly describes what constitutes success for the operation. It facilitates unity of effort as it allows subordinates to understand what is expected of them, what constraints apply, and most importantly, why the mission is being conducted. Understanding why a mission is conducted is important both in maintaining unity of effort and in bolstering the morale and will of subordinates. Soldiers who understand why they are called upon for a specific mission, and how that mission aligns with the higher echelon commander’s intent and concept of operations, are more committed to the success of that specific mission. 8-14. Commanders communicate their intent two echelons down to ensure subordinates understand the boundaries within which they may exercise initiative while maintaining unity of effort. They likewise understand the commander’s intent two echelons above them. A clear and concise commander’s intent should be easily remembered and understood even without an order. Commanders collaborate with subordinates to ensure their commander’s intent is understood. Soldiers who understand the commander’s intent are more able to exercise disciplined initiative in unexpected situations than those who do not. INITIATIVE The fog of war works both ways. The enemy is as much in the dark as you are. BE BOLD! General George S. Patton 8-15. Leaders at every echelon exercise initiative as they follow orders and adhere to a course of action or scheme of maneuver. When the enemy does something unexpected, or a new threat or opportunity emerges that offers a greater chance of success, subordinate leaders take action to adjust to the new situation and achieve their commander’s intent. Disciplined initiative requires a bias towards action rather than waiting on new orders. The mission command approach to C2 demands subordinates exercise initiative in the absence of orders, when current orders no longer apply, or when an opportunity or new threat presents itself. The cumulative effect of multiple subordinate commanders, leaders, and individual Soldiers exercising initiative produces agility in Army formations. It enables Army forces to seize the operational initiative as they pose multiple dilemmas on the enemy. 8-16. Commanders and subordinate leaders develop subordinates capable of exercising effective initiative during both training events and operations. Leaders create opportunities during training events in which subordinates must take action on their own. Commanders must foster a climate that encourages initiative during training, before the unit is committed to combat. Accepting risk and underwriting good faith mistakes establishes a unit culture that allows subordinates to learn and gain the experience they need to operate under their own responsibility. Endurance requires that the burdens of combat leadership be shared between leaders at each echelon, which is not possible without a leadership culture that demands disciplined initiative. DISCIPLINE 8-17. Discipline underpins the effective application of initiative during operations. For many parts of an operation, the benefits of exercising disciplined initiative outweigh the cost in synchronization. At other times, when synchronization or a specific process is critical to successful execution, ill-advised initiative can 8-4 FM 3-0 01 October 2022  Leadership During Operations be costly. Neither commanders nor subordinates are independent actors when exercising initiative. Subordinates consider at least two factors when deciding how to exercise initiative, assessing each in terms of the circumstances affecting it: z Whether the benefits of the action outweigh the risk of desynchronizing the overall operation. z Whether the action will further attainment of the desired end state. (See ADP 6-0 for more information on disciplined initiative.) ACCEPTING RISK TO CREATE AND EXPLOIT OPPORTUNITIES 8-18. Risk, uncertainty, and chance are inherent to all military operations. The pace and tempo of large-scale combat operations demands a high level of expertise for commanders and staffs. Commanders delegate risk acceptance to subordinates through their commander’s intent and other guidance. Based on this guidance, refined as necessary by the commander and staff as the situation changes, leaders accept risk during operations by massing effects in one area while taking economy of force measures in other areas to create opportunities that can be exploited. Understanding how much or what kind of risk to accept requires the ability to accurately see friendly and enemy forces and an operational environment in the context of a particular situation. Leaders and staff officers who are competent in all aspects of their specialties assist the commander in weighing the risk of various decisions and courses of action, balancing short-term versus long- term risk to the mission and the force. This analysis, coupled with imagination and the courage to act boldly, provides opportunities that outweigh the risk incurred. Successful commanders are aware of the effects of cumulative risk over time, and therefore they continuously assess it throughout an operation. 8-19. Opportunities to exploit a relative advantage are fleeting during large-scale combat operations against a capable enemy that adapts quickly. Delaying action while setting optimal conditions, waiting for perfect intelligence, or achieving greater synchronization may end up posing a greater danger than swift acceptance of significant risk now. Leaders’ judgment of risk must be thoroughly informed by their understanding of their operational environment, particularly how actions in other domains impact their forces and how their forces can generate effects outside the land domain. Leaders maintain a common operational picture with their counterparts in higher and lower echelons, since any risk accepted at one echelon may impose additional risk at other echelons. (See paragraphs 8-47 and 8-48 for further discussion on communicating with subordinates.) 8-20. Contingency planning enables commanders to swiftly decide and act when the unexpected occurs. By considering multiple enemy courses of action, available friendly capabilities, and developing appropriate branch and sequel plans, the staff and the commander develop a deeper appreciation for how an operation could unfold and build flexibility into their plans. Contingency planning also guards against confirmation bias, where situational cues are interpreted in ways that match preconceived ideas. Effective planning expands understanding of a situation and operational environment, allowing the commander and staff to be better postured to rapidly decide, adjust, or simply be proactive. 8-21. Commanders designate commander’s critical information requirements (CCIRs) linked to decision points during operations and the execution of branch and sequel plans developed during contingency planning. CCIRs help subordinate leaders prioritize allocation of information collection assets and other limited resources, including time. Detailed contingency planning and the development of CCIRs ensure that commanders and staffs are proactive rather than reactive in responding to enemy activity. CCIRs potentially become irrelevant as the situation changes; therefore, commanders, staffs, and other leaders must regularly review and update CCIRs to ensure relevance throughout the conduct of operations. This is a forcing function for questioning earlier assumptions made during planning that may no longer be valid. (See ADP 2-0 and ADP 6-0 for more detailed descriptions of what constitutes CCIR.) 8-22. Commanders and staffs remain alert to exceptional information during operations. Exceptional information results from an unexpected event or opportunity, or a new threat, which directly affects the success of operations. It would have been a CCIR if it had been foreseen. Identifying exceptional information requires initiative from subordinates, shared understanding of the situation, a thorough understanding of the commander’s intent, and the exercise of judgement based on experience. 01 October 2022 FM 3-0 8-5 Chapter 8 COMMAND AND CONTROL DURING DEGRADED OR DENIED COMMUNICATIONS 8-23. U.S. adversaries, including Russia and China, have demonstrated the ability to contest communications in the electromagnetic spectrum and degrade friendly C2. Degraded connectivity to a secure communications network poses risks to situational understanding, C2, and ultimately mission accomplishment. Army forces must be prepared to continue operations and achieve mission objectives when out of contact with higher echelons or adjacent units. They should assume intermittent rather than continuous connectivity during the course of operations. A mission command approach to C2 empowers subordinate leaders to act within the commander’s intent with degraded communications, reporting their new situation when able to do so. 8-24. Exercising C2 with degraded connectivity does not begin when communications break down or when a crisis develops. It must be trained and rehearsed as part of an overall cultural norm designed to make friendly forces more difficult to detect. Commanders ensure that staffs are trained on analog and manual C2, and that units have rehearsed reliable primary, alternate, contingency, and emergency communications plans. During extended periods of communication breakdown, C2 becomes more difficult as shared understanding of a situation deteriorates over time. To maintain C2 with degraded communication, personnel should be trained and proficient in— z Employing all available C2 systems. z Operating dispersed command posts. z Maintaining an other-than-digital common operational picture (COP). z Managing information with analog processes. z Monitoring communications channels and crosstalk across echelons. z Maintaining manual running staff estimates. z Conducting command post battle drills. 8-25. Army forces improve readiness for degraded communications by decreasing vulnerabilities and preparing appropriately. Units decrease their vulnerability through electromagnetic protection, including emission control, electromagnetic masking, electromagnetic hardening, and electromagnetic security. (See FM 3-12 for more information on electromagnetic protection.) Units practice degraded communications during training and rehearsals, including those that involve allies, and they use the mission command approach to C2 during garrison events. Ultimately, the solution to degraded communications is mission command and training. Even under severely degraded conditions, Army forces continue to make decisions and act in the absence of orders, when existing orders no longer fit the situation, or when unforeseen opportunities arise. 8-26. All leaders must be prepared to take action and make timely decisions when communication is not possible. The commander responsible for a decision may not be available to make that decision for a variety of reasons, such as jammed communications, the loss of a command post, or being killed by the enemy. In all cases, the senior leader able to communicate must be ready to take charge and make the best decisions possible based on available information so operations can continue. The actions of Navy pilots in a degraded communications environment during the battle of Midway demonstrated the effectiveness of exercising disciplined initiative. 8-6 FM 3-0 01 October 2022  Leadership During Operations Initiative in the Absence of Orders – Naval Bombers at Midway On 4 June 1942, American naval aviators, acting on initiative and without communications from higher echelon headquarters, struck a major blow in the Pacific War at the Battle of Midway. The Japanese First Air Fleet, known as Kido Butai, launched a massive raid against Midway Island, causing significant damage. The American carriers Hornet, Enterprise, and Yorktown launched unsynchronized strikes against Kido Butai by several different air groups. Once aloft these carrier groups were soon beyond radio range of their ships and had to rely on prior intelligence, intuition, and luck to find the enemy. Lieutenant Commander John Waldron, commander of Torpedo 8 (Hornet), believed his air group commander was leading the group on an incorrect heading. He broke formation and led his squadron on another course. They found Kido Butai and attacked, but the entire squadron was shot down because it had no fighter cover. The torpedo bombers of Torpedo 6 (Enterprise) followed Waldron’s squadron and also suffered heavy losses without scoring a hit. The dive bombers of Bombing 6 (Enterprise) and Scouting 6 (Enterprise) had launched earlier in the day and arrived at their designated coordinates without finding the enemy. Lieutenant Commander Clarence McClusky, commander of Bombing 6, could not radio back to the Enterprise for further orders. Exercising disciplined initiative, he began to search the area despite running low on fuel and found a Japanese destroyer, which he followed to Kido Butai just as Japanese fighters completed the destruction of Torpedo 8 and Torpedo 6. The Japanese fighters and anti-aircraft guns were entirely focused on the low altitude attacks from the torpedo bombers, leaving them vulnerable to a high-altitude dive- bombing run. McClusky ordered an attack by Bombing 6 which, by chance, occurred at the same time as Bombing 3 (Yorktown) arrived on the scene. The resulting action by two squadrons acting on their own initiative to carry out the mission fatally damaged three Japanese carriers, the Kaga, Akagi, and Soryu, which sank later in the day, putting the formerly outnumbered Americans at a 3:1 advantage in aircraft carriers. The performance of commanders like Waldron and McClusky, out of contact with higher commands and acting on their own initiative, led to victory at Midway. DRIVING THE OPERATIONS PROCESS 8-27. Commanders employ the operations process to incorporate coalition and joint partners, empower subordinate initiative, and to ensure authorities and risk acceptance are delegated to the appropriate echelon required for the situation. Staffs and subordinate headquarters earn the commander’s trust by providing relevant information, anticipating needs, and directing supporting actions. (See ADP 5-0 for more information on the operations process and FM 6-0 for more on the role of commanders in operations.) 8-28. The major components of the operations process are planning, preparing, executing, and continuously assessing the operation. Planning normally begins upon receipt of orders from a higher echelon headquarters and continues through the execution of the operation. The commander and staff continually assess operations and revise the plan through fragmentary orders. Commanders, assisted by their chiefs of staff or executive officers, drive the preparation for an operation by allocating time, prioritizing resources, and supervising preparation activities such as rehearsals to ensure their forces are ready to execute operations. During execution, commanders and staffs focus their efforts on translating plans into direct action to achieve objectives in accordance with higher commander’s intent. (See figure 8-1 on page 8-8 for a graphic depiction of the operations process.) 01 October 2022 FM 3-0 8-7 Chapter 8 Figure 8-1. The operations process UNDERSTAND 8-29. An operational environment includes portions of the land, maritime, air, space, and cyberspace domains encompassing the area of operations and area of interest, understood through three dimensions— human, physical, and information. Understanding how capabilities employed from each of the domains influence outcomes in the three dimensions is foundational to success during operations. Commanders communicate that understanding to subordinates. Commanders collaborate with their staffs, other commanders, and mission partners to accurate frame the operational environment encompassing the mission objectives. Commanders must be comfortable with a certain degree of uncertainty and ambiguity within an operational environment—delaying action while seeking perfect understanding may prevent a unit from exploiting a fleeting opportunity or make it vulnerable to enemy attack. 8-30. Commanders, supported by their operations and intelligence staff sections, direct the collection of information and allocate capabilities from as many domains as possible. They use operational and mission variables, intelligence preparation of the battlefield, and running estimates to help understand how capabilities in each domain affect operations on land and vice versa. Competent commanders circulate throughout their AORs as often as possible, collaborating with subordinate commanders and leaders while observing the situation for themselves. Subordinates often possess a deeper or more nuanced sense of the local situation or aspect of an operation than commanders. Direct exposure to conditions on the ground often allows them to detect trouble or opportunity before a higher echelon staff member does. Maintaining shared understanding is therefore a dynamic, ongoing process, since situations change as operations progress. VISUALIZE 8-31. Commanders visualize a desired end state and potential solutions to solve or manage identified problems. Commanders look up, out, and down as they develop their visualization of an operational environment, relying on information and observations from superior and adjacent commanders, their staffs, and subordinate commanders. An operational approach may require capabilities provided by external organizations, and the effects delivered may be dependent on conditions in other domains. DESCRIBE 8-32. Commanders describe their visualization to staffs and subordinate commanders to facilitate shared understanding and purpose. Through collaboration and dialogue, commanders ensure subordinates understand the visualization well enough to plan and conduct operations. Commanders continue to refine their visualization throughout the planning and execution of an operation and balance frequent 8-8 FM 3-0 01 October 2022  Leadership During Operations communication of this updated visualization with the need to provide sufficient time and freedom of maneuver to subordinate leaders. Commanders’ descriptions of their visualizations should account for interdependencies among various domains and the desired end states within those domains. DIRECT 8-33. Commanders direct action to achieve results and lead forces to mission accomplishment. Decision making and timely sharing of information ensures friendly forces reach a position of advantage relative to the enemy. Commanders who are able to sense, understand, decide, act, and assess faster and more effectively than enemy commanders can impose multiple dilemmas, requiring enemy forces to dedicate resources and combat power which otherwise might further their objectives. Creating and maintaining this state of decision dominance depends on the actions of the commander, informed by a knowledgeable and integrated staff. Communications systems and other technologies can help enable decision dominance, but leaders must take care to ensure they do not become overly reliant on technical solutions that may not always be available. LEAD 8-34. Leadership is the most decisive element of combat power. Effective leadership can compensate for deficiencies, while poor leadership can negate advantages. Commanders lead by personal example, the quality of the guidance they provide throughout the operations process, and the actions they take during the execution of operations. They focus on the decisions only they can make. Operations encompassing the employment of capabilities from multiple domains demand rapid adjustments based on brief windows of opportunity. Tactical patience is required to develop the conditions that create those opportunities over time. When making or changing decisions, the commander’s will and personal presence provides the moral impetus for necessary action in a timely manner. Friction is inherent in all military operations, and leadership exerted by commanders and their subordinate leaders is what overcomes it. ASSESS 8-35. Commanders, supported by their staffs, assess the situation before execution and throughout operations to understand conditions and determine what decisions they must or are likely to make. They compare the state of current operations to what was anticipated or planned, remain alert to variance from expectations, and watch for information indicating an emerging threat or opportunity. Continuous assessment helps commanders anticipate and adapt their forces to changing circumstances, enabling friendly forces to counter unexpected threats or exploit opportunities. Effective commanders encourage cross talk and dialogue between superior, subordinate, and adjacent staffs, and they conduct dialogue between commanders to share observations and maintain situational understanding. They continuously review assumptions and cumulative risk. Commanders must not be overly fixated on what is happening or may happen on the ground in the physical dimension. Not assessing the relevant events occurring in other domains, or not considering the information or human dimensions, increases the odds that enemy forces can achieve surprise. ADAPTING FORMATIONS FOR MISSIONS AND TRANSITIONS 8-36. The conduct of successful operations requires leaders and units that are able to anticipate changes and quickly adapt their formations, dispositions, or activities to meet those changes. Anticipating and adapting to changes begins with commanders, but all leaders help create agile and adaptive units, develop subordinates, inspire resilience in their people, and maintain mission focus in the face of adversity. 8-37. Changing conditions and transitions may impact the teamwork and cohesion of a formation; both require adaptation and leader attention. Some examples include— z Task organization changes. z New or changing guidance. z Periods of intense privation and fatigue. z Mission transitions. z Mission failures or setbacks. z Reconstitution. 01 October 2022 FM 3-0 8-9 Chapter 8 The example of VII Corps actions during the Gulf War demonstrate how teamwork and cohesion allow units to rapidly adapt and act when situations quickly change. Crosstalk in the Desert—VII Corps in the Gulf War On the morning of 17 January 1991, the day after the start of U.S. Central Command’s major air operation against Iraq, the VII Corps commander, Lieutenant General Frederick Franks, was with the 1st Infantry Division as it honed tank and Bradley gunnery skills in the desert of Saudi Arabia. While there, he received a spot report from Brigadier General John Landry, Corps Chief of Staff, over the radio: “55 Iraqi tanks have crossed the Kuwaiti Border, heading southwest toward Hafir al-Batin and are engaging Egyptian coalition forces in what may be the beginnings of an Iraqi preemptive strike.” Within seconds, Colonel Johnnie Hitt, commander of the Corps’ 11th Aviation Brigade, entered the net indicating that he had monitored the report and alerted two Apache battalions that could respond in 30 minutes if necessary. At the same time, Colonel Don Holder, commander of the 2d Armored Cavalry Regiment, the Corps unit closest to the reported enemy, called to notify Franks that he had issued orders for the entire regiment to occupy blocking positions in the area and to make contact with the enemy force with air and ground scouts. Those were the immediate and correct actions taken by commanders as a result of monitoring the command network and having the confidence to act—confidence developed through training, teamwork, and trust among the key players of the VII Corps team. 8-38. Commanders are responsible for developing subordinate leaders and units that are capable of adapting to the environment and the dynamic nature of operations. Training is the primary opportunity to do so, and all leaders must work to be experts at training formations and developing subordinates during that training. Successful adaptation and leader development depends on a command climate and learning environment that encourages subordinates at all levels to become subject matter experts, think independently, and take the initiative. Using a mission command approach, leaders foster a sense of shared commitment and involvement in decision making. (See FM 6-22 for more information on leader development in a learning environment.) Leaders help establish the conditions for subordinate adaptation by— z Developing leadership experience. z Fostering shared understanding. z Communicating with staff and subordinates. z Developing teams. DEVELOPING LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE Judgment comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgment. General of the Army Omar N. Bradley 8-39. Commanders and leaders develop subordinates when they prepare and then challenge them with greater responsibility, authority, and accountability. They prepare their subordinates to succeed at the next level of responsibility, since during combat many subordinates will be required to move up and replace more senior leaders who become casualties, usually with no warning. It is the individual professional responsibility of all leaders to develop their subordinates. (See FM 6-22 for more information on leader development.) 8-40. Commanders and leaders may develop their subordinates by observing them in training, accepting subordinates’ risk taking when the consequences of failure are not decisive, and providing accurate feedback. Leaders allow subordinates to accept risk on their behalf. They ensure subordinates make analytic risk decisions as time and circumstances allow, while informing their higher echelon command of the risks they are accepting. During training, leaders may allow subordinates to accept excessive tactical risk as a teaching 8-10 FM 3-0 01 October 2022  Leadership During Operations point to ensure they learn what types of risk are acceptable, which are not, and how to better assess risk. This sort of coaching helps leaders gain trust in their subordinates’ judgment and initiative, and it builds subordinates’ trust in their leader. During operations, leaders intervene when subordinates accept risk that exceeds the potential tactical benefits to the mission. Leaders inform subordinates, either at the time of the decision (if time permits) or in an after-action review, of the residual risk accepted and why. They ensure that risk management does not become risk aversion. 8-41. Inculcating risk acceptance goes hand in hand with accepting mistakes made in good faith. Subordinates who learn from bad decisions become better leaders, and commanders who underwrite those mistakes create a command climate where subordinates learn and gain the experience required to thrive under hardship. Leaders reinforce the importance of a bias towards action by highlighting the value of simply making a decision during operations, including imperfect decisions. Even so, commanders do not repeatedly underwrite subordinates’ mistakes resulting from repeated lack of judgment or an inability to learn. Nor do they tolerate repeated errors of omission or inaction where subordinates fail to exercise initiative. Leaders act to ensure subordinates learn from mistakes. Methods of doing this include— z Publicly discussing a mistake as part of an after-action review, including one made by the leader, to determine a better way to achieve the same purpose. z Correcting a subordinate directly, in situations when there is no time for an after-action review or to enable better shared understanding by the entire team. z Correcting the systemic problem that enabled the mistake. 8-42. Commanders prepare their subordinates to take their place when required, and they use training events Commanders and leaders at all levels are in and professional development sessions to reinforce the control of their subordinates during a battle value and necessity of exercising bold, appropriate only to the extent that they can initiative. In addition to allowing progress over time, this communicate. The senior leader able to prepares leaders to quickly assume greater communicate with the majority of a formation responsibilities immediately during combat. If an in a fight needs to quickly take charge when it becomes apparent that the normal chain of echelon of command is destroyed or otherwise made command is no longer functional. This mission ineffective during combat operations, a requires leaders to be prepared to operate subordinate leader must assume command as quickly as on radio nets and other C2 systems two possible. This may include elements of a subordinate levels up when the need arises. echelon commander and staff assuming the responsibilities of a higher echelon headquarters. 8-43. Self-awareness enables leaders to recognize their strengths and weaknesses and then to take appropriate action. Leaders develop self-awareness through self-critique and self-regulation during training and operations. They actively seek feedback, adapt to change, and possess the humility to accurately examine their own experiences, performance, judgment, and decision making. Under rapidly changing conditions, leaders’ self-awareness is a critical factor in making accurate assessments of changes and their own personal capabilities to operate effectively in those conditions. FOSTERING SHARED UNDERSTANDING 8-44. Shared understanding enables a mission command approach to C2. Commanders communicate their intent two echelons down, and leaders look two echelons up to gain an understanding of the commander’s intent, priorities of effort, and desired end state for operations. Commanders ensure understanding of their intent during continuous dialogue with their subordinates. When relayed in an environment of mutual trust and shared understanding, the commander’s intent frees commanders to move about the battlefield knowing their subordinates understand the end state and what must be done to achieve it, even as conditions change. Such climates allow leaders to operate knowing subordinates accurately and promptly report both positive and negative information. Prompt and accurate reporting is critical in maintaining the tempo of decentralized operations by dispersed forces along multiple axes. 8-45. Establishing shared understanding begins with leaders who educate and train themselves and their subordinates in applicable allied, joint, and Army doctrine and common tasks, techniques, and procedures. Training develops the teamwork, trust, and shared understanding that commanders need to exercise mission 01 October 2022 FM 3-0 8-11 Chapter 8 command and that forces need to achieve unity of effort. This is especially important when units are task- organized and have different command structures than they had prior to an operation. 8-46. Coalition, joint, and Army C2 systems can enable distributed operations in a permissive environment. Some systems, however, will be degraded by enemy or other action to a point that they may not be usable. In these instances, the previously developed shared understanding enables subordinate leaders to take effective action on their own while still working towards their commander’s end state. (See paragraphs 8-23 through 8-26 for more information on degraded communications and leadership.) COMMUNICATING WITH STAFF AND SUBORDINATES More than 50 percent of battle command in VII Corps was non-electric. That’s because we were a team forged together quickly during deployment. We practiced using intent. Commanders talked to each other. We were inside each other’s heads. Lieutenant General Frederick Franks 8-47. Written orders continue to have an indispensable place in exercising C2, particularly before operations commence and during their early stages. Clearly written orders promote consistency of approach in all areas of C2, and they provide a common frame of reference from which to depart. During operations, oral communications tend to be more important than written communications, for reasons of time and because of the importance of personal interaction while leading. Face-to-face communication is the most effective method, because humans use more than words to express themselves and understand each other. It is, however, impossible to communicate face-to-face with all subordinates during engagements and battles. Operations at the BCT level and below during close combat are largely dependent upon rapid, efficient tactical radio communications. The military bearing of leaders when interacting in person, and the tone of voice they use during communications when not in person, have significant impacts on their subordinates. 8-48. Effective leaders take positive steps that encourage, rather than impede, communications among and with their subordinates and staff members. They make themselves available for dialogue, and they are open to new information. Leaders who react rashly to new information, or who create barriers to communication, whether intentional or not, decrease the chances that they will receive the timely information needed to make critical decisions, and they may hinder the initiative of subordinates. Failure to properly receive and act on new information leads to mission failure. DEVELOPING TEAMS 8-49. Successful operations require shared understanding across domains and effective teamwork with the joint and multinational organizations operating in those domains. Developing teams requires continuous effort. It begins during home station activities and continues throughout preparation for and execution of operations. Leaders may serve with unfamiliar subordinate units or serve under an unfamiliar higher echelon headquarters, and they may have their task organization change multiple times during execution. To effectively understand capabilities and lead across domains, Army leaders must also build trust with elements of the joint force and Army units they may never see to effectively employ their capabilities. They need to interact effectively with host-nation, allied, and partner nation forces, along with interagency and intergovernmental partners, to ensure unity of effort when bringing to bear effects controlled by those outside the joint force. 8-50. Operational requirements may cause units to deploy with different command structures than those used at home station. Often they will not have trained with the higher echelon headquarters that employs them. Collaboration and dialogue across echelons can mitigate these potential obstacles to team building. Through these interactions, commanders gain insight into the needs of unfamiliar organizations while also sharing their own vision and understanding. 8-51. By circulating among subordinate units, commanders can assess readiness, get to know new units in the task organization, and personally motivate Soldiers. Leaders also visit and build productive personal relationships with civilian leaders in other agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and the local population in their AOs. Knowledge gained during these visits enables commanders to maintain situational understanding and continuously update their visualization prior to and during execution. 8-12 FM 3-0 01 October 2022  Leadership During Operations 8-52. Different levels of training and cultures among organizations can pose challenges to building teams. Army leaders apply their understanding of different cultures and agencies to place military efforts in context and to serve on civil-military teams. To help build partnerships, commanders strive to have partners— z Represented, integrated, and actively involved in planning and coordinating activities. z Share an understanding of the situation and problems to solve. z Collectively determine the resources, capabilities, and activities necessary to achieve their goals. z Work for unity of effort toward achieving common goals. 8-53. Successful operations require leaders working with partners to develop a shared understanding of the environment and a common commitment to solutions. Achieving unity of effort requires Army leaders to have a high degree of cultural understanding and social skills. Without such understanding and skills, leaders may fail to collaborate with diverse partners. 8-54. Quality leader development and training is required to grow and develop leaders capable of success during operations. Deliberate investment in the abilities of individual leaders, teams, and units is foundational to prosecuting those operations successfully across the competition continuum. (See FM 6-0 for more information on C2, FM 6-22 for more information on leader development, FM 7-0 for more information on training, and ATP 6-22.6 for more information on Army team building.) 01 October 2022 FM 3-0 8-13