The Need for Organisational Resilience Chapter 5

Alignment. Traditionally, the role of military staff is defined as an administrative role to serve

the operational demands of to a unit, a division or regiment. This included the administration

of manpower, finance, logistics, military education and training. More modern views on

administration emphasise a greater support of commanders on the battlefield.

As already seen on the battlefield in May 1940, German Chief of Staff is neither

relegated to an administrative function, but is used to manage information, to filter

information and to relay information to where they are needed. In essence, staff provides a

commander with adaptive space, controlling information and dealing with smaller issues that

do not require the attention of the commanding officer.

Many commanders also use their divisional or regimental staff to inform their decision

making. Ultimately, Guderian (or Rommel, see following text box) asserted ultimate decision

power, but involved corps and divisional staff; and frequently appreciated and also ignored

their advice.

[Text Box starts] Importance of a cohesive staff team – Command of the German

Africa Corps

In 1940, the Italian Army was defeated by the British in North Africa. Hitler agreed to send a German

corps of three divisions to reinforce the Italians. The first element to arrive was Lieutenant

General Erwin Rommel’s Reconnaissance Staff. The German Army also formed a larger staff,

originally called ‘General Liaison Staff Italian Army Libya’. It was led by a highly capable staff officer,

Colonel Alfred Gause. Once command relationships had been confirmed, Rommel became

commander of ‘Panzer Group Africa’. He had the German Africa Corps, the Italian XX Armoured and

XXI Infantry Corps under command. Gause became Rommel’s Chief of Staff (COS) as COS of

Panzer Group (subsequently Panzer Army) Africa. Before arriving in Libya, Gause’s team had spent

one month training in Bavaria. They had practised staff procedures and assessed the situation in

Libya in detail. The team was small; 25 officers, including the political adviser, but not the attached

artillery staff. It contained just four staff trained officers: Gause; Siegfried von Westphal (subsequently

Chief of Staff to Rommel, Field Marshal Kesselring, and then Field Marshal von Rundstedt); Friedrich

von Mellenthin (subsequently COS of Fifth Panzer Army) and one other. Rommel had not attended

staff college.

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