Problem
Large forces overwhelm a commander who tries to manage every preparation alone.
Action
Create trained staff roles to manage the scale and complexity of operations.
Outcome
Commanders can focus on tactical decisions while the staff organizes the force.
Chapter: Operations and the Napoleonic Revolution
Problem
Temporary staff assignments prevent officers from building deep staff skills.
Action
Create a dedicated career path that develops officers for staff work.
Outcome
The military gains lasting expertise in planning and coordinating operations.
Chapter: German Operational Thought
Problem
Treating operational art as a separate level can divide tactics from strategy.
Action
Use operational art to organize and support tactical actions.
Outcome
Tactical efforts remain directly tied to strategic goals.
Chapter: Soviet Operational Thought
Problem
Imported labels create confusion when they replace clear descriptions of work.
Action
Define operational work by the tasks staffs perform.
Outcome
Doctrine gives staffs a clearer purpose.
Chapter: American Operational Thought
Problem
Military advice becomes harmful when it ignores the political purpose of war.
Action
Evaluate every military recommendation against the stated political goal.
Outcome
Military action supports policy instead of drifting away from it.
Chapter: The Operational Level and the Civil-Military Relationship
Problem
Tactical forces cannot create a strategic effect without coordinated staff support.
Action
Organize staff work around the disciplines needed to prepare and sustain tactics.
Outcome
Tactical forces reach combat in a stronger position to achieve strategic effect.
Chapter: A Theory of Operational Art
Problem
Poor personnel administration can weaken a force before combat begins.
Action
Maintain the people and organizational systems required for each mission.
Outcome
Units remain ready while commanders focus on combat.
Chapter: Administration
Problem
Fragmented information efforts leave commanders with an incomplete view of the situation.
Action
Manage collection, analysis, protection, and influence as one information discipline.
Outcome
Commanders can make faster decisions from a fuller picture.
Chapter: Information
Problem
Separate tactical actions have a limited effect when not coordinated.
Action
Arrange forces and supporting arms to act together at the needed time and place.
Outcome
Combined actions produce more effect than isolated efforts.
Chapter: Operations
Problem
Fire support wastes scarce resources when destruction becomes its only purpose.
Action
Prioritize fire support based on the effect required by the tactical plan.
Outcome
Supporting weapons help tactical forces act with greater advantage.
Chapter: Fire Support
Problem
A force cannot fight effectively when it cannot move or receive supplies.
Action
Plan movement and sustainment around the full course of the campaign.
Outcome
The force can continue operating without avoidable pauses or shortages.
Chapter: Logistics
Problem
One command method cannot fit every mission or level of unit skill.
Action
Choose centralized or decentralized control according to the situation.
Outcome
Subordinates receive enough direction without losing useful initiative.
Chapter: Command and Control
Problem
A battlefield victory is not decisive unless it changes the enemy's political choice.
Action
Assess each battle by how it advances the political goal.
Outcome
Campaign decisions focus on useful strategic results instead of tactical success alone.
Chapter: Campaigns, Battles, and Decision
Problem
Labels based on terrain or fashionable concepts reveal little about how a campaign works.
Action
Classify each campaign by its use of space, time, and force.
Outcome
Planners gain a clearer basis for designing the campaign.
Chapter: Campaign Taxonomy I
Problem
A campaign can fail when its form favors the enemy's strengths.
Action
Choose a campaign type that counters the enemy's likely approach.
Outcome
The force uses its resources in a way that improves its relative advantage.
Chapter: Campaign Taxonomy II
Problem
Modern complexity exceeds the ability of temporary and rigid staffs.
Action
Select and develop officers for dedicated staff careers within adaptable headquarters.
Outcome
Staffs gain the expertise needed to support changing missions.
Chapter: Operational Art Actualized through a Modern Staff System
Problem
Separate force protection efforts can isolate defense from the rest of the plan.
Action
Plan each protective measure inside the operational discipline responsible for it.
Outcome
Offensive and defensive measures support each other.
Chapter: A Note on Force Protection
Problem
An artificial operational level can separate tactical action from strategic purpose.
Action
Use staffs to prepare and sustain tactics in direct support of strategy.
Outcome
Tactical success is more likely to produce a useful strategic effect.
Chapter: Conclusion