FORT BENNING, Ga., (Sept. 16, 2015) -- Gen. David Perkins, commander of Training and Doctrine Command, visited Fort Benning Sept. 15 to speak to Soldiers, leaders and industry representatives about the Army Operating Concept.
Perkins gave a talk during the Maneuver Warfighter Conference titled "Operationalizing the Army Operating Concept." The Army Operating Concept is a document that describes how the Army will employ forces and capabilities and identifies the top capabilities that the future force must possess in order to accomplish missions. The 2015 AOC is titled "Win in a Complex World."
"You want to present your enemy with so many dilemmas that it deters them from action," Perkins said. "When a potential adversary is making calculations, if you have multiple dilemmas you can present them, then you want to get it in their mind that they're not sure what's coming next and it might not be worth the risk."
Perkins emphasized the importance of viewing equipment through the lens of strategy. Vehicles and other items should be considered as capabilities in part of a strategy, rather than simply "things" as a means in themselves, he said.
"A tank doesn't fight by itself," he said. "It's part of a capability in a formation."
In order to get young leaders to think about equipment that way, we need to have top-notch leader training, because a high-quality piece of equipment is only part of the equation, he said.
"We try to combine these systems so that Soldiers have options," he said. "But we've got to build adaptability and critical thinking into Soldiers. It's a combination of a well-trained, well-led Soldier and technology."
Perkins mentioned an anecdote from an interaction with a foreign military leader, who praised the high degree of trust between Soldiers and leaders in the U.S. Army - something the leader said wasn't always present or easy to achieve in every military.
"Five essential characteristics are what makes our Army-trust, esprit de corps, honorable service, stewardship of the profession and military expertise," he said. "If you don't have an Army where subordinates are empowered, then you're just controlling them."
To view footage of Perkins' speech, visit https://vimeo.com/139364779.
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