JP 3-0, page 93

IV-1 CHAPTER IV ORGANIZING FOR JOINT OPERATIONS 1. Introduction Organizing for joint operations involves many considerations. Most can be associated in three primary groups related to organizing the joint force, organizing the joint force headquarters, and organizing operational areas to help control operations. Understanding the operational environment helps the JFC understand factors that may affect decisions in each of these areas. 2. Understanding the Operational Environment a. General. Factors that affect joint operations extend far beyond the boundaries of the JFC’s assigned operational area. The JFC’s operational environment is the composite of the conditions, circumstances, and influences that affect employment of capabilities and bear on the decisions of the commander (see Figure IV-2). It encompasses physical areas and factors (of the air, land, maritime, and space domains) and the information environment (which includes cyberspace). Included within these are enemy, friendly, and neutral systems that are relevant to a specific joint operation. The nature and interaction of these systems will affect how the commander plans, organizes for, and conducts joint operations. b. Physical Areas and Factors (1) Physical Areas. The pertinent physical areas in the operational environment include the assigned operational area and the associated area of influence and area of interest. Designation of the areas of influence and interest help orient commanders and staffs to relevant physical locations during both planning and execution. (a) An operational area is an overarching term encompassing more descriptive terms for geographic areas in which military operations are conducted. Operational areas include, but are not limited to, such descriptors as AOR, theater of war, theater of operations, JOA, AOA, joint special operations area (JSOA), and AO. “US military power today is unsurpassed on the land and sea and in the air, space, and cyberspace. The individual Services have evolved capabilities and competencies to maximize their effectiveness in their respective domains. Even more important, the ability to integrate these diverse capabilities into a joint whole that is greater than the sum of the Service parts is an unassailable American strategic advantage.” Admiral M.G. Mullen Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Capstone Concept for Joint Operations, January 2009