Dynamic Decision Making in Command and Control

Abstract

Decision making is a central aspect of command and control, yet it has received very little systematic study. One reason for this neglect may be the lack of a conceptual framework with which to guide research. This chapter presents an initial attempt to develop such a framework, one that has been inspired by a frequently cited quotation from the elder Moltke, a well-known 19th-century military commander (Hughes, 1993). Simpkin (1985) provides what I believe is the best interpretation of Moltke’s viewpoint:

Moltke maintained that the operational plan should seek to insure that the first contact between the main bodies occurred under the most favourable circumstances possible, and that “no plan survive[s] contact ” After this, it was a matter of responsiveness and opportunism (p 14)

The quote suggests two different kinds of military decision making. The first one, planning, is clear enough. But what happens once the plan is put in place, and contact is initiated with the enemy? I propose that at this point, the form of control changes. Specifically, it changes from feedforward control (by means of the plan) to feedback control—where the military must respond to the enemy’s response to its actions. The decision task now becomes dynamic. Viewing command and control from this new perspective—that is, as dynamic decision making—might give us some insights.