The purpose of a CV-1 is to provide a strategic context for the capabilities described in the architecture. It also provides a high-level scope for the architecture which is more general than the scenario-based scope defined in OV-1.

A CV-1 Vision model begins with a description of the high-level concept. This concept will then be further augmented by describing the high-level operational goals and strategy in military capability terms. As a general rule, the CV-1 model is not intended to specify system requirements or user requirements. Instead, its role is to set the scope for the architecture in terms of future or current military capability vision. The CV-1 model is high-level in nature and does not specify the success criteria for an architecture. CV-2 provides metrics against each capability which may be used to successfully measure fielded capabilities.

The main items dealt with in this model are goals/objectives and the enterprise vision.

The enterprise vision describes the overall aims of an enterprise over a given period of time. This can be supported by a master plan in which the evolutions that help to achieve the overall objectives of the enterprise are described. The selected master plan is then used to describe capability availability and show the associations between enterprise phases and capabilities.

Goals can be described through the MEGA objective notion. The objective items are then attached to the enterprise vision (strategic master plan) as achieved objectives.

The Strategic Master Plans are located in the Enterprise Vision folder of the CV-1 Vision model and the objectives are located in the Enterprise Goals folder.

For each notion introduced in the CV-1 model (objective, strategic master plan), there is a dictionary and a hierarchical report. Each report gives details through the potential describing diagrams.