An effective command structure for Australian Defence Force (ADF) operations is one of the most important requirements for the defence of Australia and its interests. Civilian strategic analysts sometimes dismiss their military colleagues’ apparent obsession with command. In their view, issues of international relations, strategic and defence policy, force development and budgets are the heart of strategic analysis. But command is fundamental to a military organisation. Put simply, it is the means by which the government’s wishes are translated into military outcomes. As the Vice Chief of the Defence Force, Vice-Admiral Russ Shalders, put it in 2005, the number 1 outcome for the ADF, as endorsed by the government, is the conduct of operations.