Military Review English Edition July-August 2014 | Page 16

direction by the commander using mission orders to
enable disciplined initiative within the commander’s intent to empower agile and adaptive leaders in
the conduct of unified land operations.”4 Strategic
understanding can underpin the exercise of mission
command yet need not be limited by it. Mission
command is constrained by the term mission. Missions,
for the most part, are designed to support war efforts.
Thinking about how one’s mission fits into a war is not
just helpful; it is necessary. War is about much more
than the tactical fight.
This essay will demonstrate that all Army leaders—including junior officers—must develop their
strategic understanding. It will describe how to implement a strategic studies education program for junior
officers that is consistent with the Army’s strategic
landpower concept.

The Need for Strategic
Understanding
The security environment is characterized by
exponential growth in digital capabilities and capacity. Mobile phones are prevalent on battlefields across
the globe. The powerful communications reach and
embedded cameras in cellular phones have enabled
a proliferation of civilian journalists and novice war
correspondents. The numbers are staggering: in a New
York Times editorial, Pico Iyer notes, “10 percent of
all the pictures ever taken as of the end of 2011 were
taken in 2011.”5 Steven Metz of the U.S. Army War
College writes that wars are now “live cast,” and “made
available to a global audience in real or near real time.”6
Thus it appears that landpower is headed toward the
same level of scrutiny that instant replay provides to
professional sports. Every war fought on land will be
on display, subjecting junior officers to greater examination than their predecessors. British General Sir
Rupert Smith described this new paradigm as “war
amongst the people.”7
In this context, the U.S. Army contributes to shaping the security environment by regionally aligning
forces. Regionally aligned forces are units assigned or
allocated to combatant commands or those prepared
for regional missions.8 Tactical units are to develop
sustained relationships with geographical combatant
commands, enabling greater cultural specialization.
For example, an article in Parameters by Kimberly
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Field, James