Mexican drug cartels demonstrate traits of Army Design Methodology (ADM) in their operations. A two-level resemblance of Army design activities is threaded in the evolution of Mexican drug cartels, and individually among the examined cartels. Supportive of ADM, the Sinaloa cartel presents an environmental frame of understanding. The Mexican government poses a problem frame for the cartels to counter and overcome. To address the problem, the cartels diversify criminal activities and escalate their use of violence while achieving their end state. Specifically, the rise of the Zetas highlights an operational approach founded in violence, while the New Generation Jalisco Cartel provides a reframe in the environment. Examining cartel operations through the lens of ADM revealed how organizations not traditionally associated with military design thinking may employ common conceptual planning and problem-solving techniques to accomplish strategic objectives. Military practitioners may also empathize with the flexible competency required for organizational learning and adaptability to changing situations in complex environments that drug cartels exhibit.

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