Staff (military)

From the earliest days of conflict, leaders had staff assistants, if only to hand them the next rock to throw at the mammoth. As man's ability to kill grew, so did the need for assistance to leaders. Still, for centuries, a military staff was organized around an individual, rather than in a systematic way.

One of the challenges of discussing the development of modern staff concepts is separating them from operational warfare, as true staffs emerged at roughly the same time as the corps level of organization, historically the first level that could force battle to be conducted at a particular place, time, and set of condition. While the technology of current units can put the operational role at a considerably lower level, the challenge remains. Contemporary histories tend, for example, to intermix accounts of Napoleon's use of corps with his use of a staff.

A sub-article discusses the historical development of military staffs.

Staff leadership

The concept of a formal "chief of staff" is rarely present until a unit is led by a general officer (i.e., division-equivalent or above). Below that, the "S" organization reports to the commanding officer. Several militaries, including those of Russia and the U.S., had assistants that coordinated subgroups of the staff. In the U.S. Army, the executive officer typically was responsible for personnel and logistics (and civil affairs if present); the Soviet/Russian equivalent went by several names, but "chief of the rear" was representative. The operations officer, however, has his own section, but also oversees intelligence and communications-electronics,

General vs. special staff

All staff officers having duties at a headquarters and not included in the general (coordinating) staff group or in the personal staff group. The special staff includes certain technical specialists and heads of services, e.g., quartermaster officer, antiaircraft officer, transportation officer, etc

Levels of staff

Subdivisions of a staff are usually identified by a letter and number. The letter indicates the level of organization with which the staff is associated. While the boundaries of a level may vary, common NATO levels are:

• S: Battalion through brigade
• G: Division through army; assumes a single military service
• J: Joint command, which can be multiservice, multinational, or both.

Traditional divisions of a general staff

G-1: Personnel and administration

This branch is responsible for tracking the number and status of personnel in the unit, replacing or augmenting manpower, individual training, awards and decorations, etc.

G-2: Intelligence (and security)

An intelligence staff both produces analyses and other reports, and frequently has intelligence collection units reporting to it. While a battalion-level S-2 intelligence section may consist only of an intelligence officer and an intelligence sergeant, the higher in the command hierarchy in which this branch appears, the more likely it is that it will have sections for the major parts of the intelligence cycle:

• Collection and processing
• Analysis
• Dissemination
• Security

In highly technical militaries, there is a trend to have more and more collection capability in lower-level units, since lower-level units are more likely to fight operational warfare and thus need to do their own short-term collection. At a minimum, the intelligence branch has operational control of reconnaisance/scouting units. Such units historically have been specialist ground troops, but there is a strong tendency to have, at a minimum, an unmanned aerial vehicle aerial reconnaissance capability to provide imagery intelligence. The branch frequently will control at least a basic signals intelligence capability, which, at least, has direction finding, security monitoring of one's own communications, operation of secure communications to higher-level intelligence, and HUMINT/counterintelligence specialists.

It will participate in an intelligence collection planning process, with higher-echelon intelligence units, to determine which unit and technology will cover which aspects of the enemy. As with Eurocorps, there may be an explicit planning cell.

Even if G-3 controls the situation map, G-2 is responsible for the information on that map that pertains to enemy forces. The intelligence branch will present frequent and periodic summaries of enemy force status, and, where appropriate, movements and intentions.

G-3: Operations

Responsible for unit, as opposed to individual training, and the mobilization and deployment of units for combat. Ground units frequently have a deputy for air support.

Eurocorps divides the G-3 function into five branches, which can split into more cells under crisis conditions.

G3 Plans

As opposed to a Plans and Policy staff division, which is typically the J-5 at a higher headquarters, G-3 plans is responsible for short-term operational procedures, guidance, and specific plans. These include: co-ordination of all operational short-term planning and all operational guidelines, manuals and Standard Operating *close, deep and rear operations by conventional forces.

• special operations
• information operations (IO). In Eurocorps, this is normally divided into a psychological operations and an information operations cell, while U.S. doctrine has psychological operations as a subgroup of IO

"The G3 Branch’s brains are tasked with foreseeing operations in the future and thinking over all possible ways of action within the very strict frame of order writing...The G3 Plans section manages the Decision-Making Process (DMP) and the Corps Battle Rhythm. The co-operation, co-ordination and liaison with the higher echelon, LNOs to the HQ EC, Air and Naval Component are conducted within G3 Plans.

G3 Training and Exercises

This branch prepares both command post and troop exercises, as well as budgeting for training and supervising the execution of exercises.

G3 Operations

G-3 operations maintains the "big picture" for the commander and staff, and communicates status and actions within the Eurocorps headquarters, to subordinate units, and to external headquarters and organizations that need such information. It operates the Main and Alternate command post, and also manages alerting and mobilization. In Eurocorps, it is responsible for force protection through the Military Police Staff Officer/Force Protection Officer, while [[force The primary functions of G3 Operations are the maintenance and promulgation of a common operating picture, both within the headquarters and externally, and the conduct of the current battle. It contains:

• Alert & Mobilization cell
• Home Base Ops Centre cell
• OPSCEN cell

(Military Police & Force Protection cell.

G3 Fire Support Co-Ordination Centre

Two major areas fall under this branch, working closely with the G-3 Air. First, it is responsible for the overall coordination of land, air, and naval fires in support of maneuver. It also plans both lethal and non-lethal fires in support of operations, and does the targeting for those fires. The section is organised in the following sub-cells:

• Command
• Operations
• Plans
• Targeting.

G3 Air

This staff section interfaces among the organic aviation and air defense units, as well as airspace management to deconflict aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles from higher headquarters or the supporting Air Force components.

Divisions without standardized numbers

Budget (Eurocorps G-8)

Placed here is the preparation of the multinational communally funded Eurocorps (EC) budget, as well as audit of financial and contracting. It provides the Headquarters with the necessary financial, audit and contracting support. The Eurocorps organization must comply with NATO, EU, and national component rules. . U. S. Infantry Journal, in an article by George L. Simpson, lieutenant colonel of Field Artillery, presents an extraordinary slant on world military history by picking an allstar, alltime, all-nation army corps command. Selections :

Commanding General: Frederick the Great.

Chief of Staff: Alfred, Count von Schlieffen, who planned Germany's World War strategy.

G-1 (Chief of Personnel): Graf von Moltke, German Commander in 1870.

G-2 (Intelligence): Robert E. Lee.

G-3 (Operations): Pierre de Bourcet, artillery commander of Louis XV.

G-4 (Supplies): William Tecumseh Sherman, who marched through Georgia living on the country.

Adjutant General: Julius Caesar.

Judge Advocate: Marquis de Caulain-court, Napoleon's confidential aide.

Finance Officer: Alcibiades, shrewd manager of Athens' wars.

Chemical Officer: Karl von Clausewitz, tactician who made Germany's army a great war machine.

Chaplain: Mohammed.