"Cutting the Stovepipes: An Improved Staff Model for the Modern Unified Commander"

Abstract

The modern operational level of war is characterized by a robust array of responsibilities which range from pure military planning/operations to actions which border on proconsular duties. Generally, today's American operational level military staffs are those of the unified commands (Commanders in Chief-CINCs) or sub-unified commands (such as Joint Task Forces-JTFs). These hierarchical staffs are often ill equipped structurally to achieve tempo dominance in the modern information age of compressed information/decision cycles. Current American operational staff structure, based on the 4-Section staff model, does not support the commander in the most effective manner. U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) has demonstrated that the J structured organization does not have to be the default for American unified staffs. Modern unified commands should adopt a more horizontal staff organization (potentially based on a circular model) that is adaptive, collaborative, self-synchronizing, responsive, and agile.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 01, 2001
Accession Number
ADA401422

Entities

People

  • Eric M. Mellinger

Organizations

  • Marine Corps University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Autonomy
  • C4I
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Business Administration
  • Command And Control
  • Employment
  • Information Systems
  • Management Personnel
  • Military Operations
  • Military Organizations
  • Military Science
  • Mobile Phones
  • National Security
  • Organizational Structure
  • Personnel Management
  • Second World War
  • United States Special Operations Command
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Joint Military Operations and Doctrine.

Technology Areas

  • Fully Networked C3
  • Fully Networked C3 - Command and Control