Military organization in transition from garrison to crisis environment

Abstract

The military organization is crisis-oriented since the ultimate goal of such an organization is to win the war. Yet our past experience with the military organizations show that they change a lot in their behavior and characteristics when the transition from garrison to combat occurs. Few studies have been made on the behavior of complex civilian organizations when facing a crisis. Some of the phenomena they observe are applicable to the military organization as well. The amount and magnitude of changes the military organization suffers when facing crisis might indicate that only a few of the phenomena are addressed in advance through training and by appropriate regulations. An in-depth analysis is made of the changes through which these factors of the military organization undergo while transitioning from garrison to combat environment. A questionnaire was administered to two groups of commanding officers in the American and Israeli military organization. The samples were selected from a population of officers with combat experience while in command. Based on the survey, and the author's own experience as a squadron commander in the 1973 war, this paper is looking at the changes and the shift in priorities the military organization faces when crisis occurs. Recommendation for further research and some practical steps to be taken are proposed.