# 135 S13 Ep 15 – Intelligence Preparation of the Operational Environment Done Right: A Whole of Staff Approach as the Foundation of Military Decision Making Process w/JRTC Subject Matter Experts Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-crucible-the-jrtc-experience-podcast-6038857/135-s13-ep-15-intelligence-preparation-of-the-operational-environment-done-right-a-whole-of-staff-approach-as-the-foundation-of-military-decision-making-process-w-jrtc-subject-matter-experts Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-crucible-the-jrtc-experience-podcast-6038857/135-s13-ep-15-intelligence-preparation-of-the-operational-environment-done-right-a-whole-of-staff-approach-as-the-foundation-of-military-decision-making-process-w-jrtc-subject-matter-experts.md Podcast: [The Crucible - The JRTC Experience Podcast](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-crucible-the-jrtc-experience-podcast-6038857) Published: 2026-02-28T04:36:43+00:00 Episode link: https://thecrucible-thejrtcexperience.podbean.com/e/135-s13-ep15-%e2%80%93intelligence-preparationof-the-operationalenvironment-done-right-awhole-ofstaffapproachas-the-foundation-ofmilitarydecision-m/ Audio file: https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/xkbjmwfv5ka8vs6n/Ep_135_The_Crucible_-_HPT_MA_IPOE64y2c.mp3 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-crucible-the-jrtc-experience-podcast-6038857/episodes/135-s13-ep-15-intelligence-preparation-of-the-operational-environment-done-right-a-whole-of-staff-approach-as-the-foundation-of-military-decision-making-process-w-jrtc-subject-matter-experts Duration seconds: 2364 ## Resource The Joint Readiness Training Center is pleased to present the one-hundredth-and-thirty-fifth episode to air on ‘The Crucible - The JRTC Experience.’ Hosted by MAJ Marc Howle, the Brigade Senior Engineer / Protection Observer-Coach-Trainer, and MAJ David Pfaltzgraff, BDE Executive Officer OCT, from Brigade Command & Control (BDE HQ) on behalf of the Commander of Ops Group (COG). Today’s guests are intelligence and operations subject matter experts from across JRTC: MAJ Michael Stewart is the BDE S-3 Operations Officer OCT, MAJ Edward Pecararo is the BDE S-2 Intelligence OIC OCT, and MSG Randell Conway is the BDE S-2 Intelligence NCOIC OCT from the Brigade Command & Control (BDE HQ) plus the BN S-2 Intelligence OCT, CPT Nathaniel Epps from TF-5 (Brigade Engineer Battalion). This episode dives into Mission Analysis within the MDMP process, focusing specifically on Intelligence Preparation of the Operational Environment (IPOE)—or as framed at JRTC, Staff Preparation of the Operational Environment (SPOE). A central theme is dispelling the myth that IPOE is solely an S2 responsibility. The panel emphasizes that effective SPOE requires a whole-of-staff effort, integrating all warfighting functions to build shared understanding of terrain, threat capabilities, and operational variables. Key outputs discussed include the modified combined obstacle overlay (MCOO), clearly defined areas of operations and interest, civil considerations, threat courses of action, and the development of event templates and event matrices. The conversation reinforces that these products are not checklist items but foundational tools that drive collection planning, targeting, decision support matrices, and ultimately course of action development. The discussion also highlights common failure p… ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-crucible-the-jrtc-experience-podcast-6038857/episodes/135-s13-ep-15-intelligence-preparation-of-the-operational-environment-done-right-a-whole-of-staff-approach-as-the-foundation-of-military-decision-making-process-w-jrtc-subject-matter-experts/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-crucible-the-jrtc-experience-podcast-6038857/135-s13-ep-15-intelligence-preparation-of-the-operational-environment-done-right-a-whole-of-staff-approach-as-the-foundation-of-military-decision-making-process-w-jrtc-subject-matter-experts.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.