Military Police

SPRING 2015

Military Police contains information about military police functions in maneuver and mobility support, area security, law and order, internment/resettlement, and police intelligence operations.

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25 MILITARY POLICE . 19-15-1 I magine that you are a precommand captain; and 8 months after completing the Military Police Captain's Career Course, you are assigned as the provisional bat- talion plans, operations, and training offcer (S-3). You have half of the staff of a full battalion with which to deploy the battalion headquarters in 30 days, deploy a company to three separate combatant commands with less than 90 days' notice, and maintain the home station law enforcement mis- sion. How do you manage the chaos? What are your immedi- ate priorities? How do you maintain focused training for the units at your home station? These were the challenges presented to me in the 93d Military Police Battalion (Provisional); and if it hadn't been for the leaders who chose to take the time to mentor and develop me, I would not have been able to quickly adjust systems and synchronize operations to successfully meet the provisional battalion missions. Through trial and error, I learned the importance of knowledge management and the need to effectively employ people, processes, and tools while seamlessly supporting subordinate units and meeting the demands of our three higher headquarters. My ability to provide synchronized operations through the provisional S-3 team depended on the proven methodologies of 10 good habits, with an emphasis on knowledge management, the operations process, and leader development. Habit 1: Have a Routine The S-3 must look inward, upward, and outward. This can become overwhelming and can distract from the time needed to actually observe the training that subordinate units are conducting. It is important that the S-3 observe the training frsthand. An understanding of the abilities of the leaders in the organization and the quality of training that subordinate units are conducting allows the S-3 to gain a sit- uational understanding and develop an honest assessment of the battalion. This assessment improves decisionmaking when directing operations. Establishing and maintaining a routine reserves time for the S-3 to observe training each week—in spite of the 543 other tasks on his or her plate. A well-structured routine forces the continual evaluation of planning and training and ultimately answers these ques- tions: • Are we doing the right things? • Are we doing things right? The following example outlines a routine, which— if consistently conducted each week—allows for an assess- ment of current, near-term, and long-term battalion opera- tions: • Spot-check training. • Spot-check company training meetings. • Review training schedules (T+7). 1 • Review the battalion calendar (T to T+7). • Review operation orders and fragmentary orders before publication. • Spot-check the tasking tracker. Habit 2: Stick to the Plan Establishing a synchronized and executable common op- erational picture is 90 percent of the battle, but this task is not always as easy as it sounds. Knowledge management is a fundamental aspect of getting the people within an organi- zation on the same sheet of music. According to Field Man- ual (FM) 6-01.1, Knowledge , the knowledge management principles are: understand, share, integrate, connect, learn, and trust. 2 These principles are ac- complished using established systems and tools within the battalion to develop plans, organize operations, and execute missions. If an organization is humming along in harmony, it's likely that the staff has— • Published annual and quarterly training guidance. • Established an executable battalion battle rhythm that is properly synchronized to its higher headquarters. • Published operation orders and fragmentary orders for the execution of tasks. • Published training events on near- and long-range cal- endars.

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