Jochen Wittmann

Auftragstaktik: Just a command technique or the core pillar of mastering the military operational art? Jochen Wittmann

Auftragstaktik grants commanders at all levels a maximum of freedom of action. The other services also command and control on this bases. In the armed forces of Germany´s allies, the beginnings of Auftragstaktik are recognizable. Many allied armed forces have tried to introduce Auftragstaktik based on the German experience and adopted it to their specific military cultures. Misinterpretation and misunderstanding, however, very often accompanied this attempt and process, and the intent to use Auftragstaktik very often degenerated to a lip service. Lieutenant Colonel Wittmann identifies a broad variety of definitions of Auftragstaktik in his literature analysis. Since Auftragstaktik lacks from theoretical foundation, he tries to ground it theoretically in an interesting and convincing manner. His work has, undoubtedly, extraordinary relevance to the present and future dimensions of leadership in the multinational structured armed forces of today, but also in areas outside of the military sphere.