Joint Chiefs of Staff

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is a body of senior uniformed leaders in the United States Department of Defense who advise the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, the Homeland Security Council and the National Security Council on military matters. The composition of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is defined by statute and consists of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS), Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (VCJCS), the Military Service Chiefs from the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force, and the Chief of the National Guard Bureau, all appointed by the President following Senate confirmation. Each of the individual Military Service Chiefs, outside their Joint Chiefs of Staff obligations, works directly for the Secretary of the Military Department concerned, i.e., Secretary of the Army, Secretary of the Navy, and the Secretary of the Air Force.

Following the Goldwater–Nichols Act in 1986, the Joint Chiefs of Staff do not have operational command authority, either individually or collectively, as the chain of command goes from the President to the Secretary of Defense, and from the Secretary of Defense to the Commanders of the Combatant Commands. Goldwater–Nichols also created the office of Vice Chairman, and the Chairman is now designated as the principal military adviser to the Secretary of Defense, the Homeland Security Council, the National Security Council and the President.

The Joint Staff (JS) is a headquarters staff in the Pentagon, composed of personnel from each of the five armed services, that assists the Chairman and the Vice Chairman in discharging their responsibilities and is managed by the Director of the Joint Staff (DJS), who is a lieutenant general or Navy vice admiral.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joint_Chiefs_of_Staff

• Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff - Gen Charles Q. Brown Jr.
• Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff - Adm Christopher W. Grady
• Chief of Staff of the Army - Gen Randy A. George
• Commandant of the Marine Corps - Gen Eric M. Smith
• Chief of Naval Operations - Adm LIsa Franchetti
• Chief of Staff of the Air Force - Gen David W. Allvin
• Chief of Space Operations - Gen B. Chance Saltzman
• Chief of the National Guard Bureau - Gen Daniel R. Hokanson