30 Ottobre 2025
Autori: Andrea Salvi, Paolo Spagnoletti
Abstract:
Uncertainty is a constant and systematic element on the battlefield and profoundly influence military operations. As Clausewitz (1982) argued, war is intrinsically bound to chance and a thick fog embraces decision-making in that context. This element dictates the need for frontline military functions to craft and implement processes to confront contingencies while minimizing the chances of errors and maximizing reliability. Mission-oriented organizing is an organizational doctrine (often called “Mission Command”) created to address these systemic characteristics through diffused leadership and collective mindfulness. In other words, members of the organization should have situational awareness towards the missions’ ends and be able to contribute to the decision-making process if the contingencies dictate so. Accordingly, digital systems and awareness-enhancing tools may be powerful mediums for mission-oriented organizing and may prove instrumental to the flourishing of beneficial practices in frontline contexts. Yet, data on which these systems rely may be inaccurate, discontinued or simply not available due to technical malfunctioning or human errors. Those pitfalls, given the peculiarities of the settings whereby frontline military organizations, can be extremely costly in terms of resources and human lives. Over-reliance on these systems may hamper the organizational nature of frontline functions and hinder their resilience and focus on reliability. This teaching case brings the users amid the fog of war (Willink & Babin, 2017): it takes place in the Ma’Laab district in Iraq during the “Second Battle of Ramadi” (2006). U.S. Forces and Iraqi Soldiers are conducting a series of operations to retake the district from the clutch of insurgents. They sweep through several areas of the city checking each building and each compound to detect hostile forces and to dismantle stashes of explosive materials and weapons. While on a mission, troops are monitored through a GPS tracking system called “Blue Force Tracker” (BFT). The system sends the position of allied troops (“blue”) to the Tactical Operations Centre (TOC) and each user can input enemy positions, obstacles, and other tactically relevant elements. During one particular “sortie”, the TOC receives a fierce firefight report from a U.S. Marine Corps Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company (ANGLICO) platoon - accompanied by an Iraqi platoon - with an unknown enemy unit hiding in building H204. Accordingly, the threat is inputted and mapped on the system. The marines report heavy fire from a compound, that resulted one casualty and several wounded operators. The TOC sends in a Quick Reaction Force (QRF) of armored infantry consisting of four Humvees to relieve the units that are still under the fire of an unseen enemy hiding behind concrete walls. Contemporaneously, the TOC gets another request for a QRF: a SEAL1 sniper squad in the same area - with declared position in a building (H142) - asks for immediate armored support calling in two Abrams Tanks. They are pinned due to heavy enemy fire: the squad is surrounded, outnumbered, and requires support for immediate extraction. The ANGLICO team – still engaged in the firefight -asks for clearance for an airstrike on the building in order the neutralize the threat. TOC immediately realizes what is happening. The SEAL sniper squad originally appeared to be in H204 on the BFT, they then declared by radio that they were abandoning the location to relocate in another building, then their trace disappeared from the system. The teaching case focuses on data-driven decision making in high-reliable operations and shows the advantages and pitfalls of live tracking systems in emergency frontline situations. Moreover, it highlights the interplay between technologies and coordination practices under extreme conditions.
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