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All functions of the Department of Defense (DOD) are performed under the authority, direction, and control of the Secretary of Defense.  DOD Directive 5100.01, Functions of the Department of Defense and Its Major Components, establishes the roles and functions of DOD and its major Components, defined below, supporting the core mission areas of the Armed Forces, which are “broad DOD military operations and activities required to achieve the strategic objectives of the National Security Strategy, National Defense Strategy (NDS), and National Military Strategy (NMS)” (DODD 5100.01, 2010, p.1).  We will read selected portions of the NDS and NMS later in the course. 

 

This Directive applies to DOD Components (see the DOD Organizational Chart below), which include: the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD); the Military Departments (Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force), the Office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) and the Joint Staff;  the Combatant Commands (more on these later in the lesson); the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Defense (IG DOD); the Defense Agencies(e.g., Defense Logistics Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency, National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, Defense Threat Reduction Agency), the DOD Field Activities (e.g., Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office, TRICARE Management Activity), and all other organizational entities within DOD.  See the Defense Almanac for additional information about DOD Components.

 

DOD shall maintain and use the Armed Forces to: “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; ensure, by timely and effective military action, the security of the United States, its possessions, and areas vital to its interest; and uphold and advance the national policies and interests of the United States” (DODD 5100.01, 2010, p. 2).