The Mission
During the first year of military strikes in Afghanistan following September 11, ordnance known commonly as smart bombs was the weapon system of choice for U.S. air platforms during ground assault and ground support missions. Despite their relative sophistication compared to conventional iron bombs, however, smart bombs could not simply be released from an overhead plane and then be expected to find their intended targets on their own.
Smart bombs had homing devices that could identify a signal emitted from a target or follow a beacon aimed at a target. Or they had internal navigation systems that could determine where the specific geographic location of a target was.
No matter what system was used, however, data about signals or beacons or locations had to be fed into the bomb’s navigation system. That navigation system directed the bomb’s fins to turn this way or that so that the bomb glided a short distance in one direction or another and fell where it was supposed to fall. That is to say, it fell where its guidance told it to fall. That’s not necessarily the same as falling on the right target.
In any case, smart bombs inevitably relied on someone to tell the bomb what to do. Someone had to give the bomb information about the signal being emitted from the target. Someone had to shine a beacon on a target for the bomb to follow. Or someone had to enter the navigational coordinates of the target into the bomb so that the bomb knew where the target was. And no matter what type of smart system was used, someone inevitably had to first identify the target on the ground so that the right information about the target was fed into the bomb.
Targets that emit signals, such as radar facilities, are relatively easy to deal with, as long as the enemy radar band is known ahead of time. In such a situation, pilots don’t have to see or locate their target. They only have to wait until they detect enemy radar, which their smart bomb will also detect and home in on. Better yet, they can launch their smart weapon while they are still out of range of enemy radar, and then turn away. Then their smart weapon will simply fly on until it picks up the radar signal on its own.
Smart bombs that rely on beacons or geographic coordinates, however, require more attention. Often, planes carrying smart bombs over Afghanistan could not identify a target on the ground clearly enough to shine a beacon at it. Ground?to?air missiles and gunfire and the need for surprise kept planes at high altitudes. Poor weather or night conditions might prevent pilots from seeing the ground at all.
Moreover, the planes flew over Afghanistan from distant aircraft carriers or air bases, and the target information that had been given to them when they took off was already old when they arrived overhead. The problem, therefore, was that pilots frequently did not have current target information to enter into their smart bombs before they dropped them. Several hypothetical solutions existed.
One possible solution was simply to drop more bombs or more powerful bombs in order to make up for any inaccuracy. Another was to accept target information that was several hours old or based on assumptions drawn from maps, photographs, and intelligence reports.
Still another was to widen the definition of a target. Instead of a white SUV filled with men carrying AK?47s, the new target definition would be any moving vehicle that the pilot could detect. A final possible solution was to place commandos on the ground who could identify enemy forces and communicate that information to the pilots overhead.
At the same time, the United States placed great emphasis on attacking known terrorists and avoiding attacks on civilians during this campaign. U.S. strategy was built on eradicating terrorist networks in Afghanistan while simultaneously building a relationship with the rest of the Afghan population. Accordingly, any solution had to minimize the possibility of bombing innocent civilians. Moreover, the likelihood of close combat between terrorists and U.S. forces was real.
At times, U.S. forces and terrorists were only a dozen feet apart. Target information had to be extremely accurate.
Additionally, because of the mobility on the ground of U.S. forces and terrorists, any solution had to provide timely information. Finally, because of the planes’ limited flying time, the solution had to provide pilots with target information shortly after they arrived over Afghanistan, rather than near the end of their flying window.
The only workable solution that met all of these conditions was the placement of commandos on the ground to identify targets and relay target information quickly. A commando mission, then, was to deliver this solution. That meant getting close enough to a potential target to be able to positively identify it and either shine a beacon at it or determine its exact geographic coordinates. That meant arriving at the target vicinity before the arrival of the aircraft.
It also meant being able to communicate with the pilot flying overhead. And it meant being able to hold off an enemy attack at an adequate distance so that the planes overhead could bomb the attacking terrorists without hitting the commandos.
The Take-Away
Who’s on your company doorstep late at night, and what do they want? Identifying your problem is the first step toward defining your mission. The enemy is at the gate? Your troops are outgunned? The locals are joining the other side against you? Once you recognize the specific problem that needs solving, you can identify a mission that delivers the solution. The rest falls into place.
Brand management companies worth their salt don’t stop analyzing market conditions once they have identified a change in the market share of one of their products. What caused the change? Did a competitor drop its price? Did a new SKU reach store shelves? Are consumer preferences changing direction? Was a two?for?one coupon run in last Sunday’s paper?
Only by nailing the exact cause of the shift can primo marketers develop an effective and cost?efficient solution. They can develop a new line extension that capitalizes on the latest consumer taste trend, for example. Or they can run a new print ad that boosts a recent product launch in a particular market. Once the solution has been identified, marketers can launch a mission to deliver that solution. Specific problem. Specific solution. Mission.
The alternative would be to spend money across the board to fix a niche problem. Two quarters of television advertising, two separate fifty?cent coupons in nationwide circulars, and an expensive new graphic design won’t help that much if the issue is poor inventory management at a large retail chain.