unity of command

The idea, born of Sun Tzu's "The Art of War," that each person in an organization should report to one, and only one, boss. If you have two commanders, they might issue conflicting orders. It's fine for you to sit in a chain of command where your single supervisor has a supervisor, all the way up to the commander in chief.

Unity of Command is one of the Nine Principles of War.

Armed forces have always been large organizations—usually larger than one leader can command and control. Therefore, the leader must make arrangements to deal with different parts of the armed forces—all operating at cross-purposes with one another. While units should know and be ready to execute the plan or contingency plans. This principle is one of the most difficult to practice.

Back to Principles of War
Back to Jane’s Military History Nodes

Sources: See Principles of War main page