1 November 2024
Following an intense year of training, international engagement and support to operations, Exercise Pozieres Lessons provided an opportunity for commanders and key staff from across the Army to capture lessons learnt in 2024.
Hosted by Commander 1st (Australian) Division, Major General Ash Collingburn, Exercise Pozieres Lessons is a warfighting seminar focused on driving learning and adaptation throughout Army.
This year’s seminar focused on lessons learnt during a range of demanding exercises and activities as well as alignment with the National Defence Strategy.
Major General Collingburn highlighted the importance of drawing out lessons learned on how a multinational division fights and integrates with partners and allies.
“Pozieres Lessons is an important opportunity for us to join together and review lessons from this year’s campaign season,” Major General Collingburn said.
“The National Defence Strategy has brought many changes to the Australian Army. One of those things is a refocusing on the division as the Army’s unit of action.
“I am determined that 1st (Australian) Division keeps the main thing the main thing. Warfighting is our main thing."
While it is one thing to capture and identify lessons learnt; the true sign of adaptation is to apply what's been learnt moving forward.
This year, Exercise Pozieres Lessons set the context for a subsequent seminar. Exercise Polygon Wood allowed commanders, key staff and senior mentors to explore options for how Army might command and control land forces, as part of the integrated force for the future.
“We are designing for conflict and adapting for competition," Major General Collingburn said.
“Importantly, we are now organising at divisional and domain levels."
These opportunities to learn and adapt support Army’s preparation for Exercise Talisman Sabre 2025, the cornerstone of Defence’s major collective training in 2025.
