UNSTOPPABLE PLANS
also true at both the tactical and strategic level. Transformational technologies are those technologies that help bring each of these circles close together by reducing the time and effort required for the OODA process to take place. For the tactical user this could be something like an integrated sensor architecture that enables units on the ground to integrate real-time intelligence data with their immediate environment via a heads up display, all while being directed through an urban environment by an artificial intelligence algorithm designed to minimize human contact with civilians. For an acquisition leader, this could be real-time portfo- lio investment optimization based on evolving third-party trend reports and published industry investment roadmaps.
Many organizations and individuals have one or more of these circles in place but the process of communicating, networking and integrating among them is fractured, static, laborious and costly. Transformational technologies bridge the gaps and pull the circles closer together until they overlap. And when all three circles intersect, unstoppable plans are possible.
Unstoppable plans are devised proactively, keeping yourself one step ahead of the adversary and shaping the environment to limit and direct what options your opponent has available.
FROM WAR OF ATTRITION TO WAR OF DECISION As Krause explained in his 2003 article, the goal of decision domi- nance is not to destroy the enemy, but to make them surrender or not fight you in the first place. It’s about moving past attrition warfare, where two parties keep killing each other until one side quits. Decision dominance is about making the enemy decide to quit before they even start fighting you.
Te first step in achieving decision dominance is understanding what it takes for your opponent to surrender or not fight at all. Tis will help you develop a platform and strategy for counter- ing your adversary. Te second step is to develop a plan that can
90 Army AL&T Magazine Summer 2022
handle anything the enemy throws at you and be able to adjust in real time as needed.
Tus, decision dominance relies on having accurate knowledge of what drives your opponent’s decisions, which allows you to be able to counter their moves before they make them. Tis requires more than just understanding their culture and geography. It’s about understanding how they think, what their fears are and what motivates them.
Decision dominance is achieved when you have the right people to execute the plan with accurate knowledge of your opponent’s decision-making process and the ability to decide faster than your opponent on what actions to take. Te most important aspect of decision dominance is to understand what your opponent’s strat- egy and intentions are, so you don’t fall into their traps or get caught off guard by an unexpected attack.
It is through the knowledge of the opponent’s decision-making process that combatant commanders can react to their enemy with speed and precision, maneuvering them out of advantageous positions or bringing them under attack from multiple directions at once. Decision dominance enables combatant commanders to take decisive advantage in any situation.
“It is increasingly critical to move toward a strategy that does not rely on attrition or annihilation and that affects the mechanisms permitting the enemy to be defeated economically,” wrote Krause.
“Deliberate and methodical application of this decision domi- nance strategy will promote the goal of full-spectrum dominance by shaping and dominating an adversary’s decision-making cycle and understanding how, when and why the enemy leader will realize defeat.”
CONCLUSION In this new paradigm we see how decision dominance has become a highly desirable end state that provides both tactical and strate- gic planners with a spectrum of tools and options for mitigating threats. In some instances, this can be done without the need for violence or kinetic effects. Decision dominance is achieved with the ability to create unstoppable plans that adapt to a chang- ing environment and fully integrate your current state with your objective outcomes. Tis adaptability, the ability to spring back to a steady state after dealing with a crisis (decision point), is what gives power and advantage to one side over another and will be one of the critical factors affecting the future conflicts that the U.S. and other countries face.
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