Effects-Based Operations (EBO): A Grand Challenge for the Analytical Community

by Paul K. Davis

This report describes principles and considerations for future analyses of effects-based operations.

120 pages, Paperback

First published February 25, 2002

Reviews

[Ned Conway]

Effects-based operations (EBO) are defined as "operations conceived and planned in a systems framework that considers the full range of direct, indirect, and cascading effects--effects that may, with different degrees of probability, be achieved by the application of military, diplomatic, psychological, and economic instruments."

In layman's terms, it is a way of designing operations that starts with the effect one wants to achieve, and works backwards from there...doing things because we SHOULD rather than because we CAN. EBO doctrine grew out of a "revolt" among Vietnam era fighter pilots who saw the endless bombing campaigns of that war as embracing the old military adage that, "if all you have is a hammer, all your problems look like nails." seems particularly apt in our current situation today in Iraq and Afghanistan. also planning on writing my dissertation on something closely related. this book was written by a RAND guy and appears to be the most well-written monograph on the subject to date.

[Marcelo Pitrella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paul Davis, with the support of RAND Corporation, were able to sumarize in 85 pages the controversial and sometimes missunderstood cocepts refered to EBO. It´s presented like a manual, with tehorical fundamentations, definitions, principles and examples that make this subject very understable, even for the civilian readers.
The tables, figures and diagrams along the book, helps the readers to follow thw writen main ideas. Recomendable