I'm a Former U.S. Army Captain — This Is the Military Secret You Need to Know to Build High-Impact Teams Success in business, like in battle, depends on speed — but speed without clarity leads to chaos. Commander's intent empowers teams to make fast, confident decisions without waiting for top-down approval, ensuring they stay aligned with the mission while adapting to uncertainty.
By Alok Chanani Edited by Kara McIntyre
Key Takeaways
- Commander's intent empowers employees to make quick decisions aligning with the company's core mission, driving efficiency and innovation.
- Clarity of mission and trust in team members are crucial for rapid execution and adaptability in fast-changing business environments.
- Companies embracing decentralized decision-making and continuous learning are outperforming those clinging to rigid, top-down leadership models.
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
In business, just like in battle, uncertainty is a given. Markets change, technology advances and competition is relentless. The best companies don't just react to change — they anticipate, adapt and execute with precision. But speed isn't enough. Without a clear strategy, even the fastest teams will spin their wheels. That's where commander's intent comes in.
Originally developed in the military, commander's intent is a principle that allows teams to make fast decisions without waiting for instructions from leadership. It's about giving people the freedom to act while ensuring they never lose sight of the bigger objective. In an uncertain, high-stakes world, it's the difference between teams that stall and teams that move forward with confidence.
As an entrepreneur, you're leading your team into uncharted territory every day. If your employees need approval befo re taking action, bottlenecks form, momentum slows and opportunities slip away. But when your team knows the mission — the deeper "why" behind their work — they can solve problems, make smart decisions and drive results without waiting for permission. That level of clarity and trust is what separates companies that thrive from those that get stuck.
Related: 7 Steps to Building a Smart, High-Performing Team
How I learned the power of commander's intent
When I was a U.S. Army Captain, I thought a tight command structure was the key to order and efficiency. But I quickly learned that in fast-moving situations, where the best-laid plans fell apart in seconds, something else was far more valuable: giving people the ability to make their own decisions within a clear mission framework.
In high-pressure situations, my unit couldn't afford to sit around waiting for orders. We operated under commander's intent, a leadership approach that defined the objective, the purpose and the guiding principles — but left the execution to us. Every soldier knew the overall mission. Instead of waiting for instructions, they moved forward, knowing their decisions would contribute to the success of the operation. That approach turned every team member into a problem solver.
Fast-forward to today. As the CEO of BuildOps, a fast-scaling tech company, I see the exact same principle apply in business. With teams across time zones, markets changing overnight and innovation cycles moving faster than ever, waiting for top-down approvals is a death sentence. The only way to move at the speed of the market is to ensure every person in the company knows the mission, the objective and the non-negotiables — then trust them to execute.
Related: 7 Proven Tips for Building Trust and Strengthening Workplace Relationships
How entrepreneurs can apply commander's intent
The first step is to define the mission with absolute clarity. People can't execute effectively if they don't understand what success looks like. If your team needs a 50-page deck or a leadership meeting to remind them of the company's core objectives, you have a communication problem. Everyone in the company should be able to articulate the mission in one or two sentences. What are we trying to achieve? Why does it matter? What principles guide our decisions? When the answers to these questions are crystal clear, execution becomes second nature.
Empowering teams to make independent decisions is the next step. Too many founders say they want autonomous employees but create environments where every decision requires approval. That mindset kills speed, creativity and accountability. The reality is that talented people want to own their work. They want to be trusted to figure things out. When leadership constantly intervenes, employees stop thinking for themselves and start playing it safe. A team that hesitates is a team that loses.
This isn't about removing structure. It's about building a culture where people move forward without fear. A company that encourages risk-taking and innovation will always outperform one that operates with a rigid playbook. The key is to establish clear parameters while giving people the flexibility to make judgment calls. That's the difference between teams that just execute tasks and teams that drive outcomes.
Decentralized decision-making doesn't mean teams operate in silos. It means they move fast, reflect often and continuously improve. The best companies build feedback loops into their culture. They don't wait for an annual review to evaluate performance — they analyze, iterate and refine in real time. A company that celebrates learning moves faster than one that avoids mistakes.
At my company, we live by this approach. Last year, we launched a new product that missed key targets at an important milestone. Instead of calling it a failure, we dissected what went wrong, made adjustments and improved the offering based on real user feedback. That ability to course-correct without hesitation is what keeps a business agile. Every challenge is an opportunity to get stronger. The moment a company stops learning, it starts to fall behind.
Related: 3 Leadership Secrets That Lead to Team Empowerment
Why this matters more than ever
The business world is moving faster than ever. The companies that survive aren't necessarily the biggest or the most well-funded — they're the ones that can adapt the quickest. Leaders who insist on being the sole decision-makers will always lose to those who build teams that can execute independently. Speed is everything, but speed without clarity is chaos. Commander's intent provides the structure that allows companies to move fast without losing direction.
The best teams aren't the ones that wait to be told what to do. They're the ones that ask, "What's the mission, and how do we get there?" When leaders give their teams that level of clarity, everything changes. Decisions happen faster. Execution improves. Innovation accelerates. Leadership stops being a bottleneck and becomes a true enabler of growth.
The old model of leadership — where every decision funnels through the CEO — is outdated and unsustainable. In today's world, a company that relies on bureaucracy will be outpaced by a company that prioritizes autonomy, trust and rapid execution.
The companies that embrace commander's intent will build resilient, high-impact teams that thrive in uncertainty. The ones that don't will be left behind.
