"The application of the Commander's Intent" Combined Joint Task Forces (CJTF) and contemporary types of missions such as Peace Operations require diverse component forces that serve a multitude of roles, often bringing together non-U.S. Forces, private volunteer organizations, and other government agencies. Coordination and cohesion among these various agencies have proven difficult for CJTF operations. Effective creation and application of the Commander's intent (CI) may prove to be the glue which holds component forces together and ensures mission effectiveness. This paper provides a useful perspective of CI. The author provides an applied definition of CI with criteria for determining the effectiveness of a CI statement. CI is a synchronization tool to focus the initiative of subordinate sub-element commanders. CI is the commander's personal verbal and graphic summary of the unit mission and concept of operation that establishes a description of the mission objective and method, thus enabling commanders two echelons below to exercise effective combat initiative. Several examples of effective statements are provided, and the author discusses changes in Army doctrine that should be made to eliminate any ambiguities that currently exist in the doctrinal literature.