TC 1-05
Decisionmaking, Plans, and Orders
Section IV Operational Plans and Orders
Plans and orders are used to disseminate the commander's decision
and concept. They usually require compromise between speed,
responsiveness, orderly procedure, and detailed planning and are
reviewed constantly. While an operation is in progress, fragmentary
orders can be used to make changes to previous instructions.
The art of planning is to anticipate. A plan is a continuous, evolving
framework, used as a reference point rather than a blueprint.
Plans
Success in planning rests on the ability to accomplish four tasks:
Understand the full scope of the situation.
Analyze the situation to discern what is important--the key
elements of operational design.
Devise simple, effective, and flexible plans.
Prepare the force to execute those plans.
Consider factors of the situation following the METT-TC outline (see
table 4-1).
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10 May 2005