Army Planning Doctrine: Identifying the Problem Is the Heart of the Problem

Summary

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Staff Organization and Procedure, established problem solving as the bedrock of Army doctrine.1 In all subsequent versions of FM 101-5, its successor FM 5-0, Army Planning and Orders Production, and a wide range of other doctrine manuals, writers consistently framed professional competence in terms of solving problems. In order to fill the gap, Army doctrine and officer education should emphasize how to * Analyze the operational environment to grasp facts related to the variables of context, capabilities, and structure. * Analyze height, width, depth, and time factors to understand maneuver relationships that friendly forces must establish and prevent. * Assess time-space factors to understand the defeat mechanisms that favor friendly forces. * Summarize conclusions developed during analysis and assessments in order to develop a statement of the tactical problem that will guide planning and decision making. * Write cogent problem statements based on structured analysis that produces findings and conclusions concerning critical relationships between and among the important factors of a given situation.

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Army Planning Doctrine: Identifying the Problem Is the Heart of the Problem

IN 1968, U.S. Army Field Manual (FM) 101-5, Staff Officers' Field Manual: Staff Organization and Procedure, established problem solving as the bedrock of Army doctrine.1 In all subsequent versions of FM 101-5, its successor FM 5-0, Army Planning and Orders Production, and a wide range of other doctrine manuals, writers consistently framed professional competence in terms of solving problems. Military as well as civilian problem-solving models share one core concept-the first step is to identify the problem.2 Yet, neither Army doctrine nor professional military education curricula offer a problem-structuring methodology. Thus, for over three decades we have based our military doctrine on the indispensable capacity to solve problems, but without a clear method to satisfy the first requirement: how to synthesize critical facts and relationships into a problem statement that can guide planning and decision-making. To fill the gap in Army doctrine, this article offers a teachable problem-identification method.

A Few Basics

In any discussion of problem identification, a definition or common reference point is helpful for two key terms: problem and factor. Accordin...

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