ATTP 5-0.1 Commander and Staff Officer Guide - Army Electronic ...

The Military Decisionmaking Process
4-42. In the absence of facts, the commander and staff consider assumptions from their higher headquarters
and develop their own assumptions necessary for continued planning. An assumption is a supposition on
the current situation or a presupposition on the future course of events, either or both assumed to be true in
the absence of positive proof, necessary to enable the commander in the process of planning to complete an
estimate of the situation and make a decision on the course of action (JP 1-02).
4-43. Having assumptions requires commanders and staff to continually attempt to replace those
assumptions with facts. The commander and staff should list and review the key assumptions on which
fundamental judgments rest throughout the MDMP. Rechecking assumptions is valuable at any time during
the operations process prior to rendering judgments and making decisions.
Begin Composite Risk Management
4-44. The Army primarily uses CRM for identifying hazards and controlling risks during operations. Risk
management is the process of identifying, assessing, and controlling risks arising from operational factors
and of making decisions that balance risk costs with mission benefits (FM 5-19). (See FM 5-19 for a
detailed discussion on CRM.)
4-45. The chief of protection (or S-3 in units without a protection cell) in coordination with the safety
officer integrates CRM into the MDMP. All staff sections integrate CRM for hazards within their
functional areas. Units conduct the first four steps of CRM in the MDMP. FM 5-19 addresses the details for
conducting CRM, including products of each step.
Develop Initial Commander’s Critical Information Requirements and Essential Elements of
Friendly Information
4-46. Mission analysis identifies gaps in information required for further planning and decisionmaking
during preparation and execution. During mission analysis, the staff develops information requirements
(IRs). Information requirements are all information elements the commander and staff require to
successfully conduct operations (FM 6-0). Some IRs are of such importance to the commander that staffs
nominate them to the commander to become a commander’s critical information requirement (CCIR).
CCIRs consist of friendly force information requirements and priority intelligence requirements. (See
FM 6-0.)
4-47. Commanders determine their CCIRs and consider the nominations of the staff. CCIRs are situationdependent
and specified by the commander for each operation. Commanders continuously review the
CCIRs during the planning process and adjust them as situations change. The initial CCIRs developed
during mission analysis normally focus on decisions the commander needs to make to focus planning. Once
the commander selects a COA, the CCIRs shift to information the commander needs in order to make
decisions during preparation and execution. Commanders designate CCIRs to inform the staff and
subordinates what they deem essential for making decisions. The fewer the CCIRs, the better the staff can
focus its efforts and allocate sufficient resources for collecting them.
4-48. In addition to nominating CCIRs to the commander, the staff also identifies and nominates essential
elements of friendly information (EEFIs). Although EEFIs are not CCIRs, they have the same priority as
CCIRs and require approval by the commander. An EEFI establishes an element of information to protect
rather than one to collect. EEFIs identify those elements of friendly force information that, if compromised,
would jeopardize mission success. Like CCIRs, EEFIs change as an operation progresses.
4-49. Depending on the situation, the commander and selected staff members meet prior to the mission
analysis brief to approve the initial CCIRs and EEFIs. This is especially important if the commander
intends to conduct reconnaissance and collect information early in the planning process. The approval of
the initial CCIRs early in planning assist the staff in developing the initial reconnaissance and surveillance
synchronization plan and the subsequent reconnaissance and surveillance plan. Approval of an EEFI allows
the staff to begin planning and implementing measures to protect friendly force information, such as
military deception and operations security.
14 September 2011 ATTP 5-0.1 4-9