The US Army’s Special Forces teams are 12 people. Despite their small size, these teams can equal the fighting power of a light infantry company. The capabilities of one of these teams:
Plan and conduct Special Forces operations separately or as part of a larger force; infiltrate and exfiltrate specified operational areas by air, land, or sea; conduct operations in remote areas and hostile environments for extended periods of time with a minimum of external direction and support; develop, organize, equip, train and advise or direct indigenous forces up to battalion size in special operations; train, advise and assist other U.S. and allied forces and agencies; plan and conduct unilateral SF operations; perform other special operations as directed by higher authority.
The small team size comes with a bunch of advantages: They’re self-contained, can work swiftly and quietly, don’t have the presence of conventional military troops, and are able to operate without a big infrastructure.
Big can be powerful. But even the Army realizes small can be a great way to get things done too.
Ed Tennant
on 04 Sep 09It is wonderful when all those who infiltrate an operational area are able to exfiltrate successfully.
David Spotts
on 04 Sep 09Jesus did pretty well with a 12 man team.
GeeIWonder
on 04 Sep 09don’t have the presence of conventional military troops, and are able to operate without a big infrastructure.
I take your point, but this seems like very selective reading. This part of the quoted text:
develop, organize, equip, train and advise or direct indigenous forces up to battalion size in special operations
seems to me to be at least as important in recent conflicts as any Chris Ryan or George Pappard references. SF can be used as force multipliers too.
Greg H
on 04 Sep 09Why have 12 people, when you could just have 1 badass person like Mark Wahlberg as a Sniper
Ben
on 04 Sep 09I’d love to see a layout of the 37signals structure. Who answers to who. Who oversees what. What titles they have. That would be helpful in learning how to structure a small business with Getting Real principles.
Dave Malouf
on 04 Sep 09what are you trying to say w/ this? Are you trying to say that 12 people is an ideal size for everything? That small, agile is good for everything?
Why does the military have so many different sizes to work with? It’s b/c 1 size does not fit all.
Let’s see 12 people run a full combat scenario on an aircraft carrier. Of course they can’t!
My point being is that you need to be careful when you post something like this in the position that 37signals is in. It sounds like a generic recommendation as opposed to an interesting observation.
Sometimes 12 women can’t make 20 babies in 9months. Ya just need more!
—dave
Thomas Reitz
on 04 Sep 09“The Enemy’s Gate Is Down”
Bob
on 04 Sep 09So who’s Mr. T on the 37signals A-Team?
Greg H
on 04 Sep 09There is also Texas A&M 12th Man tradition.
Scott Radcliff
on 04 Sep 09If I were to compare a hugely successful web team to a special forces unit, I would compare the fact that each member has a very strong and unique skillset that allows the other members to excel at their skills.
Very different skills will make the team stronger.
Mohammed Mudassir Azeemi
on 04 Sep 09I think Chuck Norris did best in this case.
But on the serious note, good tip, small and nimble prevail. Reason is simple, they have more maneuverable then the gigantic titanic. although it is not necessary true in every situation but ideal for Start-ups.
to @Dave Malouf, I think he means keep the team small (12 is not the golden number, but just an inspiration) . It can’t be generic. Because different situation demand different sizes and team.
—Mudassir Azeemi
Patrick
on 04 Sep 09Bad comparison.
A light infantry company is roughly 30 people, 75% of which have probably less than 2-3 years of experience. So an A-Team of 12 people, each with 10-15 years experience can get done as much as team twice their size with a fraction of their experience. Shocking insight there.
And where did each member of these A-Teams get their experience from? Most likely by serving in those ‘inefficient’ light infantry companies for about few years.
In addition, A Teams primary purpose is not to fight (though they definitely can), but to train, and take the hard won military experience and pass it on to foreign armies.
Anonymous Coward
on 04 Sep 09@Dave Malouf:
Some genetic engineering should produce more of Arnold & Danny..
Tristan Juricek
on 04 Sep 09So…
...perhaps we can still take some enlightenment from the idea that a smaller experienced group (that works together) brings value to a larger, inexperienced group.
You know what I usually find? 1, maybe 2 experienced people tossed together with inexperienced people. Not 12 in a multifunctional, experienced unit.
I’d bet you’ll get way more value out of a small cross-functional consulting group (that operates together) then the equivalent number of individual consultants. Probably cheaper too.
K
on 05 Sep 09@ David Spotts
Except he got betrayed and then killed…
Odin
on 05 Sep 09Superb idea! How about comparing each position in an A-team to a small web dev team?
Ashley Tate
on 05 Sep 09@patrick: A company is typically 75-200 solders, not 30. You may be thinking of a platoon.
German Blitzkrieg
on 06 Sep 09You write “Big can be powerful. But even the Army realizes small can be a great way to get things done too.” I seldom get to read such moronic statements, so congrats on this.
There’s no realizing at all here in play. It’s just that you (well, perhaps not you in particular) generally use the best tool for a task. E.g. you cannot invade a country with a small unit of special forces soldiers. You also can’t conduct clandestine guerilla operations in enemy territory with some thousand redneck wild west shooters aka us soldiers.
So no, not even the us army realizes that it would be a great idea, to invade foreign countrys with small special ops forces because it “can be a great way to get things done too”.
Man, don’t you think before you pour your mindjizz into public?
Chris
on 07 Sep 09Actually 11 is probably the better number. Many sporting teams are 11 (cricket, soccer) and one in 11 people are colour blind, 1 in 11 are gay, 1 in 11 have handicaps and 1 in 11 can’t reproduce (well 2 generations ago that was the case). From a Darwinian perspective these anomalies have survived because they: keep the tribes small or, in the case of colour blindness, have good hunting vision (camouflage doesn’t work).
But I would take one John Rambo anyday
heist
on 07 Sep 09ha check the backlash.
37S: “here’s a bit of a quote that illustrates situations where small teams can be powerful”
NO ARMIES HAVE TO BE BIG
.... i think you guys missed the point.
David Newberger
on 07 Sep 09I think most are missing the point here. An A Team is a highly specialized group of individuals. Each of the people on an A Team bring something that another person doesn’t bring to the games. Intel, Weapons, Communications, and Medical to name just some of the special skills. Think of an A Team as the gurellia or insurgent fighter.
They bring chaos to a system. They bring change to a system. They disrupt the status quo and they do it while trying to blend in as much as they can. Speaking local Dialects, Changing there appearance, and working to assimilate with the locals in the area.
This is found among Marine Corps Units as well. Some commanders have been known to write orders that are only a few sentences long. From there things are fleshed out at lower levels that are more in tune with the situation on the ground. This can go as low as the platoon or even squad level.
It all boils down to the fact that an A Team is a small highly specialized group of people who works from the bottom up to change the status quo.
Devan
on 08 Sep 09Hmm…British special forces use 4 man teams…does that mean they are 3 times as efficient as US special forces? :)
BA Baracas
on 09 Sep 09I ain’t gettin’ on no plane Hannibal!
This discussion is closed.