Essential elements of information (EEI) is any critical intelligence information required by intelligence consumers to perform their mission. The EEI are specific to a particular event, thing, or other target individual. The EEI are written out in advance as questions by consumers of the EEI information. Then, the EEI questions are used by

collectors Collector(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Collector (character), a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe * ''Collector'' (2011 film), a 2011 Indian Malayalam film * ''Collector'' (2016 film), a 2016 Russian film * ''Collec ...

of the information that may not be in direct contact with the consumer at the time the information is collected. A specific set of EEIs are used by collectors to develop a collection plan to find the answers to the questions in the EEIs. EEIs are also used in non-intelligence fields, such as responders to

crisis A crisis ( : crises; : critical) is either any event or period that will (or might) lead to an unstable and dangerous situation affecting an individual, group, or all of society. Crises are negative changes in the human or environmental affair ...

events or

medical emergencies A medical emergency is an acute injury or illness that poses an immediate risk to a person's life or long-term health, sometimes referred to as a situation risking "life or limb". These emergencies may require assistance from another, qualified p ...

Definitions

The

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secu ...

defines EEI as follows: :"The most critical information requirements regarding the adversary and the environment needed by the commander by a particular time to relate with other available information and intelligence in order to assist in reaching a logical decision. Also called EEIs." The

United Kingdom Ministry of Defence The Ministry of Defence (MOD or MoD) is the department responsible for implementing the defence policy set by His Majesty's Government, and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces. The MOD states that its principal objectives are to ...

defines EEI as follows: :"These represent the intelligence consumers’ specific requirements. Expressing complex intelligence requirements as a collection of essential elements of information provides the additional level of guidance needed by intelligence collectors and analysts to achieve the desired effect." The

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

eliminated the term EEI from its doctrine in August 2014, though Joint doctrine still uses the term.

Examples

air force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...

unit might have the following EEI about SA-20 batteries: * "what is the current location of the adversary SA-20 battery?" A medical crisis manager might have the following EEIs: *What is the scope of the incident and the response? *How will it affect service delivery? *Where are the impacted communities? *What population is impacted? *What is the anticipated medical surge? *Determine communication means *Evaluate healthcare organization, staff and supplies **Healthcare facility status **Consider healthcare facility incident command status *Determine health department status *Identify who need to know *Identify resources to be deployed *Consider healthcare facility decompression initiatives

References

* * {{Intelligence cycle management Intelligence assessment Military intelligence collection