General Patton and Mission Command: The Battle of the Bulge

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Recommended: The philosphy of mission command

Operational leaders see how the individual components of an organization fit together and use those individuals work to make a larger outcome. When they focus on a problem, they think of what works best within the process and systems to make an impact on the situation. These types of leaders play a big part in making sure that things get done in an effective and functioning manner. According to the Army Doctrine ADP 6-0, the Army over time has strayed away from operational leaders and adapted Mission Command, which gives leaders the ability at the lowest level the capability to exercise disciplined initiative in an act of carrying out the larger mission . Mission Command is made up of the following six steps: Understanding, Visualize, Describe, Direct, Lead and Assess, in which a commander is responsible for. General Patton understood the intent of the Battle of the Bulge on different levels, he was able to form a mental image for the course of actions for the allies, enemies and lead his Army into combat while guiding his officers and soldiers to succeed in meeting his intent. The Battle of the Bulge is where General Patton gained one of his greatest military achievements by using his tactical leadership and logistical genius, which in return helped him turn around the main forces and forced the Germans to drive back in their final counter-offensive. General Patton strongly exercised Mission Command by understanding, visualizing, leading, and commanding what was known as the largest and bloodiest battle during World War II. In order to receive a victory in the Battle of the Bulge, General Patton used Mission Command Analysis in order to understand how he can be successful for this mission. The first thing of understanding t... ... middle of paper ... ...ouse.com/article/10498657/a-study-of-general-george-s-patton-jrs-leadership-style. Sanderson, Jefferey. "GENERAL GEORGE S. PATTON, JR.” Last modified may 22, 1997. Accessed January 4, 2014. http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CCwQFjAA&url=http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a331356.pdf&ei=tYbHUtv3HcGs2gX2u4HAAQ&usg=AFQjCNFU5EzdWjKlt81w8gh_Bj2UEttaZw&sig2=aAz3jIZg7U6peDzL_i8w9w. Harkins, Paul. War as I knew it. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Houghton Mifflin Company Boston, 1947. Battle of the Bulge-940.94 BLA Leo Hayes Library Encyclopedia of WWII, the New Grolier-940.53 Leo Hayes Library http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/ww2/Bulge.html http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=battle+of+the+bulge&search_type=&aq=4&oq=battle+of+the ADRP 6-0 Battle of the Bulge, The Deadliest Battle of World War II, American Experience

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