An officer is one who holds a Queens commission and with whom the buck stops. The military has a 2-tier system, the 2 tiers being exclusive but neither of which can operate without the other.
A 30yr WO may come up with the best plan to skin said cat, but it would be the (maybe) 2yr Fg Off that finally rubber-stamped the plan, thus carrying the can if it all went Pete Wrong. Geddit?
As Pontius said, the similarities between the 2 tiers are many, but the officers will eventually (though not always a good thing) pull the biggest punches.
A good officer will listen to those around him, take in all the facts, formulate a plan and then put forward a coherent method of executing said plan. The important bit is being able to communicate that plan in a way that can be instantly understood by all. THAT'S the difficult bit. Just ask the Air Force Board.
