During COA Analysis, what is identified and tested by war-gaming the flow of the operation?

During COA Analysis, what is identified and tested by war-gaming the flow of the operation?

• A. Unity of effort
• B. Difficulties or coordination problems
• C. Resource shortfalls
• D. Risk indicators

Answer: (B)

During COA Analysis, war-gaming the flow of the operation focuses on how the sequence of actions, decisions, and information actually unfolds and whether everything can be coordinated smoothly. By acting out the plan step by step, you see where one unit must wait on another, where signals or orders could be misinterpreted, or where delays in communications could cascade into a failure to tempo the operation. Those identified frictions are difficulties or coordination problems, the kinds of issues that can derail achieving the desired effect if not addressed. This exercise helps you adjust the plan—reorder tasks, tighten sequencing, clarify command relationships, or assign liaison roles—so the operation can proceed with fewer surprises. Other concerns like lacking resources or generic risk indicators might surface, but the flow war-game is most about exposing and testing coordination points that determine whether the operation can actually move as planned.

During COA Analysis, war-gaming the flow of the operation focuses on how the sequence of actions, decisions, and information actually unfolds and whether everything can be coordinated smoothly. By acting out the plan step by step, you see where one unit must wait on another, where signals or orders could be misinterpreted, or where delays in communications could cascade into a failure to tempo the operation. Those identified frictions are difficulties or coordination problems, the kinds of issues that can derail achieving the desired effect if not addressed. This exercise helps you adjust the plan—reorder tasks, tighten sequencing, clarify command relationships, or assign liaison roles—so the operation can proceed with fewer surprises. Other concerns like lacking resources or generic risk indicators might surface, but the flow war-game is most about exposing and testing coordination points that determine whether the operation can actually move as planned.