Mission success and safety – striking the right balance

ABSTRACT For a military commander in the field balancing the requirement of successful mission completion while ensuring maximum safety is a complex task. Therein, arises many questions like: Do the risks outweigh the benefits?; Is a calculated risk benefit approach suitable for a military organisation in war? In today’s transparent world there is a need to take cognizance of such aspects while catering for operational necessity. This paper analyses the concept of safety and military missions, by balancing the requirements via the application of available tools, measures, training and judgement like Operational Risk Management (ORM), Efficiency Thoroughness Trade-Off (ETTO), Bold Leadership, Novelty and Innovation, and technology management to name a few.