Applying War Principles in Non War Environments: Unity of Comman

 

The purpose of this series is to examine the 9 Principles of  War behind US military operations and examine both the positive and detrimental impacts bringing these principles into a peace time environment. The hope is to harness the positive, and mitigate the harmful.

Premise: 

• War is the application of force, as a last resort, when all other means of conflict resolution has failed.
• It is by nature and practice destructive and harmful, with scarring and unintended consequences the longer it continues
• Therefore, war itself should be waged for as brief a period as possible, with specific predetermined objectives to minimize non-combatant and society-wide destruction.
• Every nation creates principles of  war to align and focus the preparation, resourcing, planning and conduct of this dangerous, necessary, and rare activity we call war.

The Problem:

• Conducting war requires highly skilled, resourced, and conditioned people.
• The precision required for these high stakes operations have a lasting impact on people ( warriors) who participate long after they leave their roles.
• Former warriors carry many of these principles into non-war times and environments that inform and shape their actives in every part of society to which they return.
• Though the impact of these transferred principles positively impact their society, it can also produce unintended consequences.

The Purpose in this article:

• Explore the impact of the principle   "Unity of Command" as it leaves war and enters peace.

• Unity of Command – For every objective, seek unity of command and unity of effort. At all levels of war, employment of military forces in a manner that masses combat power toward a common objective requires unity of command and unity of effort. Unity of command means that all the forces are under one responsible commander. It requires a single commander with the requisite authority to direct all forces in pursuit of a unified purpose.

                                        -US Army Field Manual FM 3–0

Assumptions

A leader moving from military to a civilian role may bring the following assumptions to their peacetime environment:

• All people groupings, informal or formal, temporary or permanent, require a single leader
• They believe the situation is beneficial, and beings clarity, efficiency, and reduces conflict in any group undertaking
• All decision making authority is derived from this leader, even if they delegate them to others, to the lowest level.
• They will assume a follower role if they perceive there is another leader in charge. If they do not perceive a leader, they will assume "command"

The conflict

• Most groupings of people in  Western peace-time are not aware of this principle, and when they are aware of it, do not agree this is ideal. Many soldiers go to war to protect themselves and their families from such an environment in peace.
• Many groups in an non-war environment have a much more collaborative problem solving and decision making as part of their culture.
• This lack of awareness of each other's diverse ways of working creates conflict. The source of this conflict is usually hard to pin down.

Agency

• The cost of bringing the principle of Unity of Command into non-war environments removes agency from every person but the leader in the group. 
• The agency of  the individual is a key feature in any country where authority of leaders is derived from the consent of the people.

agency, the property or capacity of actors to make things happen:

  

- Britannica

Unity of command in a non-war of environment assumes the people involved and not "In command" have given consent, when they have not. This inevitably creates conflict.

 Signs of the conflict

• The leader who "assumes control" has to divert significant time trying to teach the "followers" about the system and why it is important
• The assumed leader imposes lower and and lower decision making control to demonstrate their authority. Like requiring itemized approval for approved budgets; frequently interrupting but refusing to tolerate the interruptions of others.
• Because the leader believes they are "In command" Bias the leader carries show up in their decisions, delegations, transactions with others in the group along gender, ethnic, racial political lines.
• In business, family, churches, organizations, the leader with this false assumption is frequently in conflict. In a business, it can be a contributor to high turn over.
• If the person really is the leader, or the patriarch or Matriarch, they may work work to deny resources to those who do not buy into this derived authority model.

 Deconfliction

•  Find out if this belief is actually held by the person in the center of the recurring conflict.
• Suggest to them that there are other forms of problems solving possible
• If they cannot or will not use more participatory methods, and they cannot be removed
• The organization needs to put boundaries in place to protect its members, explain and reinforce them if necessary.

-more to follow[p this is incomplete

References:

US Army Field Manual FM 3–0

• Objective – Direct every military operation toward a clearly defined, decisive and attainable objective. The ultimate military purpose of war is the destruction of the enemy's ability to fight and will to fight.
• Offensive – Seize, retain, and exploit the initiative. Offensive action is the most effective and decisive way to attain a clearly defined common objective. Offensive operations are the means by which a military force seizes and holds the initiative while maintaining freedom of action and achieving decisive results. This is fundamentally true across all levels of war.
• Mass – Mass the effects of overwhelming combat power at the decisive place and time. Synchronizing all the elements of combat power where they will have decisive effect on an enemy force in a short period of time is to achieve mass. Massing effects, rather than concentrating forces, can enable numerically inferior forces to achieve decisive results, while limiting exposure to enemy fire.
• Economy of Force – Employ all combat power available in the most effective way possible; allocate minimum essential combat power to secondary efforts. Economy of force is the judicious employment and distribution of forces. No part of the force should ever be left without purpose. The allocation of available combat power to such tasks as limited attacks, defense, delays, deception, or even retrograde operations is measured in order to achieve mass elsewhere at the decisive point and time on the battlefield. ...
• Maneuver – Place the enemy in a position of disadvantage through the flexible application of combat power. Maneuver is the movement of forces in relation to the enemy to gain positional advantage. Effective maneuver keeps the enemy off balance and protects the force. It is used to exploit successes, to preserve freedom of action, and to reduce vulnerability. It continually poses new problems for the enemy by rendering his actions ineffective, eventually leading to defeat. ...
• Unity of Command – For every objective, seek unity of command and unity of effort. At all levels of war, employment of military forces in a manner that masses combat power toward a common objective requires unity of command and unity of effort. Unity of command means that all the forces are under one responsible commander. It requires a single commander with the requisite authority to direct all forces in pursuit of a unified purpose.
• Security – Never permit the enemy to acquire unexpected advantage. Security enhances freedom of action by reducing vulnerability to hostile acts, influence, or surprise. Security results from the measures taken by a commander to protect his forces. Knowledge and understanding of enemy strategy, tactics, doctrine, and staff planning improve the detailed planning of adequate security measures.
• Surprise – Strike the enemy at a time or place or in a manner for which he is unprepared. Surprise can decisively shift the balance of combat power. By seeking surprise, forces can achieve success well out of proportion to the effort expended. Surprise can be in tempo, size of force, direction or location of main effort, and timing. Deception can aid the probability of achieving surprise.
• Simplicity – Prepare clear, uncomplicated plans and concise orders to ensure thorough understanding. Everything in war is very simple, but the simple thing is difficult. To the uninitiated, military operations are not difficult. Simplicity contributes to successful operations. Simple plans and clear, concise orders minimize misunderstanding and confusion. Other factors being equal, parsimony is to be preferred.

Officers in the U.S. Military sometimes use the acronyms "MOSS MOUSE", "MOOSE MUSS", "MOUSE MOSS", "MOM USE SOS", and "SUMO MOSES" to remember the first letters of these nine principles.