Design: The Future of Planning?

Abstract : The complexity of warfare in the 21st century has significantly evolved. The wicked problems that military planners face has forced the military to reexamine the practices that are used in developing solutions to these challenges. Army Field Manual (I) 5-2, Design, dated 20 February 2009 was developed to assist military planners in these endeavors. According to the Manual,design is an approach to critical and creative thinking that enables a commander to create understanding about a unique situation and on that basis, to visualize and describe how to generate change. This paper explores the following questions: (1) Is Army Field Manual (I) 5-2, Design, consistent with joint operational art in the U.S. military?; and (2) Should design be incorporated into U.S. joint military doctrine to offer Commanders an additional planning tool that can be complimentary to the current Joint Operations Planning Process (JOPP)? The paper supports the conclusion that design should be incorporated into U.S. joint military doctrine to give Commanders another tool for accomplishing complex missions. Other recommendations for further research and analysis concerning the utility, implementation, and applicability of design in operational art are shared.