“why” and the “what”). The “how” is left up to the person or team with the assignment. This style of management is contrasted with Command and Control, which has been historically more common in business as well as in the military but has consistently failed to win against maneuver warfare practices.
A dramatic example of Auftragstaktik in business is Self-management. The companies Valve and Morning Star, a tomato growing and processing company, do not have any dedicated managers. WL Gore is an engineering company with aerospace products that also has adopted this principle to a great extent. It is up to every individual to align their “job” with the company mission and then work with others using their skills in a valuable and complimentary fashion. There is inherently high maneuverability for an organization when fixed titles, especially “manager,” have been eliminated.
Einheit (trust) This is also referred to as Group Cohesion or Unity. As previously noted, maneuver warfare is not compatible with rigid command-and-control operations. It recognizes that decision making must reside with those closest to the action. This enables everyone to execute the most rapid OODA Loop of which they are capable. Thus, people must be trusted to act on their best judgment based on the observations and resources they have available. However, their judgment will not be satisfactory without understanding the mission commands and center of focus upon which they are to aim their efforts.
Fingerspitzengefül (fingertip feeling) This is an intuitive sense and understanding of things. It comes from deep understanding of the environment and people in it (customer intimacy). This is the source of “implicit guidance and control” as mentioned by Boyd. Often in business (as in war or scenarios when basic survival is at stake), there is no substitute for a hunch or gut feeling.
Behendigkeit (mental agility) This is the ability to break out of one’s existing patterns of thought and action and adopt new patterns. For those who are dealing with transformational innovations in technology and business such as sUAS, this ability becomes essential.
The digital revolution presents many instances of Behendigkeit. Mobile apps and crowdsourcing networks are creating disruptive threats and
Auftragstaktik with Einheit (The USAF Thunderbirds)