Analysis Across Examples

Taken as a whole, the examples raised to illustrate this sixth guiding principle of maneuver warfare offer several key insights. First, Cisco, Jackson, McClellan, and Rosenbluth International can all be examined from the perspective of Boyd s OODA loop. Cisco shortened the time required to o bserve and o rient by locating d ecision making authority close to unfolding events and exploited the slow d ecision making of its rivals. And its investment in information sharing further enhanced its decision makers ability to o bserve and o rient, thereby facilitating sound and timely decisions throughout the organization.

Jackson exploited the lack of communication and long travel time between Union outposts to operate inside the Union Army s OODA loop. Dispersed Union forces could not begin their OODA cycle until Jackson a cted. By the time reinforcements arrived and a cted in response, Jackson was already focused on the next engagement and in the midst of a subsequent OODA cycle.

McClellan, in addition to taking a painfully long time to o bserve and o rient, was reluctant to d ecide and a ct.

Rosenbluth dramatically accelerated the o bserve and o rient process by assigning himself to a travel agent s desk, and he used his authority in the company to ensure that a ctions matched his rapid d ecision-making speed; competitors were only beginning to o bserve and o rient as he proceeded through multiple OODA cycles. Cisco, Jackson, and Rosenbluth all operated inside opponents OODA loops .

Second, Boyd s analysis of aerial combat, Jackson s campaign in the Shenandoah Valley, and Rosenbluth International s rapid-fire sequence of perfectly timed moves illustrate the cumulative effects of not permitting an opponent to recover from previous actions. In contrast, McClellan s willingness to let his reeling opponent regroup eliminated any momentum his forces could have generated in the attack.

Third, while Jackson illustrates how an individual can drive tempo from the top down, Cisco and Rosenbluth International illustrate how an individual can foster rapid tempo in an organization from the bottom up. Cisco decentralized decision making as a means to achieve tempo; Hal Rosenbluth located himself and his considerable decision-making authority where he could keep his finger on the pulse of the market and react to unfolding events in real time.