2-16. Understanding the situation requires both analysis and synthesis. Analysis is the process of studying a situation by successively dividing it into parts and addressing each part in turn. For example, the initial stages of mission analysis and IPB rely heavily on analysis. Understanding the parts of a situation is necessary; however, understanding the parts alone does not provide an appreciation of the relationships among the parts. That appreciation requires synthesis. Synthesis is thinking about how the parts of a situation work together as a whole rather than in isolation. As part of planning, the commander and staff synthesize results of mission analysis to make sense of the situation before developing COAs.