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Letter from the Editor
Themes for Future Editions
Table of Contents
Against Bureaucracy
Richard Adams, PhD
An Australian scholar calls for senior leaders to reform an entrenched military bureaucracy that he believes suppresses the principles of mission command and impairs ethical reasoning.
Reducing the Size of Headquarters, Department of the Army: An After-Action Review
Lt. Gen. Thomas Spoehr, U.S. Army, Retired; Brig. Gen. David Komar, U.S. Army; Lt. Col. Terrence Alvarez, U.S. Army; Lt. Col. Raymond Shetzline, U.S. Army, Retired
A team of senior leaders recently from the Office of Business Transformation describe how Headquarters, Department of the Army redesigned the organization to significantly reduce the number of employees while improving functionality.
Producing Strategic Value through Deliberate War Planning
Lt. Col. Jim Cahill, U.S. Army
A new war-planning framework is proposed to mitigate the inherent tensions between politicians and civil and military leaders.
The Need for a Brigade Politics-and-Policy Staff Officer
Maj. Adam Scher, U.S. Army
A brigade-level politics-and-policy staff officer position could ensure commanders understand the political, social, and economic complexities that affect operations.
Expeditionary Land Power: Lessons from the Mexican-American War
Maj. Nathan A. Jennings, U.S. Army
The Mexican-American War provides a case study of expeditionary operations in conventional and guerrilla settings, with lessons relevant to current and future operations.
Cutting Our Feet to Fit the Shoes: An Analysis of Mission Command in the U.S. Army
Maj. Amos C. Fox, U.S. Army
Proposed improvements to the Army’s mission command doctrine would encourage commanders to use a continuum of control based on their assessment of the situation.
Complex Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield in Ukrainian Antiterrorism Operations
Victor R. Morris
A case study from training conducted in Ukraine illustrates a way to analyze the complex group dynamics that influence the operational environment.
Operational Surveillance and Reconnaissance Battalion
Capt. Brian Fitzgerald, U.S. Army
A reorganization of the Army’s long-range surveillance (LRS) units into a consolidated battalion would provide corps commanders more effective, responsive, and predictable organic surveillance assets, according to this former LRS detachment leader and company commander.
From Riley to Baku: How an Opportunistic Unit Broke the Crucible
Lt. Col. Jerem G. Swenddal, U.S. Army; Maj. Stacy L. Moore, U.S. Army
The authors describe how the 1st Infantry Division built and trained a cohesive team to defeat a world-class opposing force during a warfighter exercise in a complex decisive-action training environment.
Building Digital Lethality
Capt. Jonathan Stafford, U.S. Army
Training personnel to operate the Army’s mission command information systems is as important as the systems themselves. The 1st Infantry Division’s chief of knowledge management details how the unit used digital gunnery tables developed by the Mission Command Center of Excellence to achieve digital proficiency.
Sleep Banking: Improving Fighter Management
Maj. Amy Thompson, U.S. Army; Capt. Brad Jones, U.S. Army; Capt. Jordan Thornburg, U.S. Army
A unit demonstrates the positive impact adequate sleep has on individual and team performance, health, safety, and readiness during an experiment in “sleep banking.”
Leadership Innovation in the Reserve Officer Training Corps and the Future of the Force
Col. Andrew Morgado, U.S. Army
Consistent with the Army Operating Concept, the U.S. Army Cadet Command is adapting its approach to preparing future leaders.
Creating a Resource: Helping U.S. Army Central Establish a Historical Document Collection Program
Michael Yarborough
An Army historian recounts his experiences and lessons learned from deploying to Kuwait to develop a historical materials collection program for U.S. Army Central during operations in Iraq.
Writing: A Way to Maximize Returns on the Army’s Investments in Education
Maj. Hassan Kamara, U.S. Army
The author opines that an increased emphasis on writing can help the Army effectively utilize the soldier expertise it is cultivating through sustained investments in education. This article won second place in the 2016 DePuy writing contest.
Letter to the Editor
Dr. Jon Fallesen
Dr. Jon Fallesen, chief, Leadership Research, Assessment and Doctrine Division of the Center for Army Leadership, responds to an article by Col. Kevin McAninch published in the September-October 2016 issue of Military Review, “How the Army’s Multi-Source Assessment and Feedback Program Could Become a Catalyst for Leader Development.”
Review Essay - The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements
Lt. Col. Benjamin Buchholz, U.S. Army
An Army strategic planner builds upon Eric Hoffer’s book The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements in a discussion of how to counter mass movements arising in Islamic cultures.
Book Reviews
Contemporary Readings for the Military Professional
Cover 3
In 1879, Congress declared George Washington’s birthday a federal holiday. It has since become commonly known as Presidents Day and is celebrated annually on the third Monday in February to honor all U.S. presidents. This year we commemorate those presidents who served in our military.