Candidate Doyle's Orientation Case Study

Candidate Jordan delivered an in depth five paragraph order. SNC posted security ensuring that the safety of the fire team was not put at risk. SNC had a good initial plan and proceeded to move the fire team towards the objective. SNC moved the fire team through the woods with minimal opposition; SNC maintained communication and good dispersion. Upon receiving enemy fire SNC suppressed the enemy by assaulting the enemy. SNC pushed through the objective to ensure that all enemy were killed. However, SNC forgot about the weapons cache and commenced to conduct a hasty 180, followed by a consolidated 360, and then an ACE report. SNC, in his haste to complete the problem, completely forgot that the mission was not only to subdue the enemy

Candidate Perras delivered the five paragraph order in the correct order and covered all details; however, he did tend to take long pauses that did not allow for the order to flow. During the execution phase, SNC lost sight of the tactical mindset by allowing a member to pass off his weapon. Even though the fire team remained focused on accomplishing the mission, at times they seemed lathargic. SNC maintained solid communication with the security. Upon realizing that his initial plan of attack was not going to work, he quickly devised a new plan without hesitation. He was able to use all of the fire team members effectively and they followed his lead without hesitation or conflict. SNC remained calm and confident and there was no question

Candidate Genter began his brief strong with an Orientation that included key terrain in the area. However, SNC's Execution paragraph not only lacked detail, but completely omitted Tasks and any executable plan to accomplish the mission. The extent of SNC's Scheme of Maneuver was to utilize the planks to move, causing many questions from his fire team members following his brief. SNC's lack of initial plan significantly hindered the sense of urgency with which his fire team moved, and in his absence of direction, another team member began to make decisions and direct the team leader and the rest of the fire team what to do. When SNC did communicate to his fire team, he did so in a composed and calm tone of voice. However, this did little

Candidate Caughran delivered his 5 paragraph order phenomenally. SNC ensured to cover all information as it was relayed to him, as well as add information regarding the terrain and climate conditions. SNC displayed the utmost confidence, through the inflection in his voice as well as the assertiveness used when assigning tasks to the fire team. During the execution, SNC positioned himself properly so that he was able to direct the team. He encountered minor error when the team reached the friction point. His position was no longer effective and he was forced to become more hands on with the mission. Once hands on SNC was able to help his team progress forward, and prevent any casualties. SNC posted security before and during the execution,

Candidate Lamb posted security prior to the beginning of his brief. Candidates Lamb's brief was delivered confidently, naturally, and not rehearsed. SNC was very comfortable delivery the 5 paragraph order. During his brief, SNC oriented his fire team and provided references to aid in the understanding of his order. Prior to execution, SNC developed an initial plan that included all the elements necessary to complete the mission. During execution, SNC was able to make decisions at points of friction. SNC was able to develop a sensible and comprehensive plan by gathering intelligence and taking suggestions. However, SNC did not rely solely on the suggestions of others to make informed decisions. At points of friction, SNC checked on the

Candidate McKenzy demonstrated and understanding on how to conduct a five paragraph order but omitted key information throughout the entirety of the brief. SNC displayed he was somewhat confident with his brief by his calm demeanor using a conversational tone during his brief. SNC stated there is no need for security prior to conducting his brief. The scheme of maneuver was vague, and non-executable without further guidance. The tasking statement stated basic billet assignments as who was the ready, fire and the assist. Once the execution began, SNC was in control of his subordinates and effectively communicated adjustments to the initial plan. Upon the first friction point, SNC remained calm and was able to devise a new plan and maintained

Candidate Satterwhite established 360 security upon arrival at TAA9. Candidate Satterwhite’s initial brief to the fire team leaders was confident, containing necessary information to complete the mission, with minimal stumbling; SNC constructed terrain model during the initial brief and did not delegate a subordinate acquire the azimuth. Candidate Satterwhite issued tasks that enabled fire team leaders to effectively lead instead of micromanage. Prior to departure, SNC assigned specific tasks and developed an initial plan to prevent the squad from appearing as soft targets by directing the fire teams disperse and skirt the tree line along the road, which displayed communication and situational awareness. When a point of friction occurred, Candidate

SNC briefed the five paragraph order addressing each paragraph. SNC briefed the order with confidence, using an authoritative voice, which demonstrated a clear understanding of the mission. SNC did have to rely on suggestions from others, for example; SNC was told by the fire team member that bringing the map was a part of the mission. During the mission, the fire team received enemy contact that resulted in a fire team member being wounded. SNC was able to respond without hesitation in which he and his fire team provided treatment to the casualty while the other members provided security. SNC displayed a sense of urgency and managed time effectively instructing his fire team to firemen carry the casualty. SNC made effective use of his subordinates

Candidate Johnston gave a confident and proper mission brief to the fire team. SNC kept the momentum of his fire team going throughout the exercise. SNC recognized the need for a decision at points of friction and made timely decisions with information given despite any uncertainty. SNC maintained awareness of mission and demonstrated an understanding of the mission. SNC made decisions and tasked subordinates in a manner that indicated SNC had a thought out plan. SNC demonstrated some ability to observe and maintain awareness of surroundings and enemy’s position. SNC appeared to be comfortable in front of peers. SNC projected a firm voice with minimal stumbling. SNC generally understood and assumed the role of team leader during this

SNC did not initially ensure 360 degree security at the assembly area. SNC’s enemy situation lacked significant details. SNC’s friendly situation was not briefed in the proper format. SNC’s scheme of maneuver was not complete enough to be executed and his tasking statements did not have an associated purpose. At the beginning of execution SNC attempted to give a command to his fire team leaders to get ready to begin their movement; when nobody in his squad responded he announced that fire team leaders had 30 seconds to get ready to move. SNC was an ineffective communicator; he attempted hand and arm signals after receiving indirect fire and would give vague tasks to unspecified individuals instead of his fire team leaders. Upon enemy contact

SNC did a descent job when explaining the orientation for the plan of attack. Body langauge and tone of voice indicated that SNC was not sure of how to execute the plan. SNC seemed unsure as to understanding the mission and how to accomplish it. SNC did brief the adminstration and the logistics paragraph, however he failed to develop an initial plan prior to starting exectuion. It wasn't until the fireteam had difficulty in the execution of the mission that SNC decided to step in and develop an initial plan. SNC did not respond in a timely manner which left his Marines confused as to what's going on. SNC got involved after valuable time was wasted. SNC did maintian focus of the assignment, however SNC was too relaxed during the time when his

Candidate Allen performed the operation brief to his fire team prior to accomplishing the mission. The tempos of his brief was hit and miss, with him giving a decent orientation, situation, and mission, he lost his train of thought; resulting in several moments of silence while he regain his composure to move on with the brief. While on patrol he had his team in the left column formation and changed it to the wedge to address the flexibility of control to the flat terrain. At the point of friction, SNC team came under fire. Sustaining a calm demeanor and shouted out commands to his team to take a prone position and issued orders for them to execute buddy pairs to the aggressors at the objection. Although his plan strategy was successful,

Candidate Jang unsuccessfully plotted the location of the objective as well as the azimuth. SNC delivered his five paragraph order that confident, however he mislead the squad when informing them that the mission was to support their platoon in “defensive” vice “offensive” operations. During execution SNC displayed that he did not have control over his squad nor did he understand the order relayed to him. SNC on two separate occasions attempted to lead the squad in the wrong direction, one of these instances he was adhering to the instruction of a squad member after already being instructed by the evaluator. SNC lost control of the squad when the make a wrong turn. The evaluator halted the squad to inform the leader, and in the same moment

Candidate Couch took a long time to get started briefing. He spoke softly, had a slow pace and a calm demeanor, with occasional pauses during his brief. He briefed a detailed friendly situation, covering missions and roles of higher and adjacent units. He provided a well-thought out mission statement and indicated that his squad was the main effort. He walked his team through his scheme of maneuver and provided a solid initial plan. In his Administration paragraph, he briefed generic Med-Evac and EPW information and did not actually mention which fire teams were to handle these issues. Throughout the movement, SNC stayed within the tree line and made good use of hand and arm signals. He stopped, set up security, and requested permission

Candidate Ammen briefed a below standard order that lacked paragraphs one, two, and three. This showed a lack of understanding of the entry level orders process. During execution, he rapidly became distracted by counting penalties himself rather than letting his subordinates handle the task themselves. This led to his team taking charge of the problem and him often finding himself in a positon to not be able to control his fire team effectively. This was seen in his desire to cross the obstacle first and then try and provide his guidance and vision from the far side. His confidence became shaky over time, but he was able to accomplish his mission at the end of the exercise by recognizing the strengths of his subordinates and man-handling the