“It
is essential for victory that Generals are unconstrained by their
leaders.” Sun Tzu
The
lonely General stood erect on his ground. His gaze went far as his eyes could
see the unfolding battle. He was not lonely because he was left alone or
deserted but he was lonely in his thoughts. His grey cells were placing the
options in the right corners of his calculating brain. Watching the dust rise
on the battle field, he was concentrating hard to bring forth his tactics. He
was pushing his brain to generate the best attack philosophy and had an onerous
task of fighting against a mighty enemy. The advantage was that the battle was
being fought on his home ground and the infiltrating Army had surrounded the
General’s domain. The General had established himself as a warrior and a
philosopher. His reputation had started traveling to the nooks and corners of
the World as a grand strategist. He was a keen student of SWOT Analysis and had
developed a unique capability to penetrate the enemy’s mind. His capability to
achieve loneliness shut his outside World and he knew only himself and his
thoughts which would churn out the battle game. His thoughts firmed up and he
churned out clear instructions and explicit commands to his battle ground
commanders. General Sun Tzu then waited and watched as his Commanders decimated
the enemy’s Army which was 10 times larger than his own Force. The victory
established the General’s traveling credentials into a firm belief.
Sun
Tzu’s commanders fought fearlessly as they knew that there was no turning back.
The Kingdom had to be defended and the costs had to be paid by the enemy and
not his men. War, after all, is a matter of life and death. Like the General in
a War, the CEO’s in today’s business world are always fighting an uncertain
future. The strength of adversaries today cannot be calculated and the big data
poses its myriad challenges to “not so
lonely” minds. The matter of death by the surrounding enemy motivated Sun
Tzu’s soldiers so that they could live to see another day. Today, the CEO’s
face the same General’s dilemma as they push the employees to achieve higher
ROIs to keep their brands afloat in the churning oceans of global businesses.
General
Sun Tzu had a considerate King as his ruler. The King understood that his
limitations would not let him survive the onslaught of the marauding enemy. He subdued
his own dilemma by entrusting General Sun Tzu and then let Sun Tzu achieve his
loneliness. General Sun Tzu was a keen practitioner of three Golden Rules:-
(a)
The
key to success lies in intelligence.
(b)
Outwitting
the enemy was more important than winning the battle on the first day.
(c)
A
limited Force should not go head to head in a battle unless death is the only
option.
With
no external influence, all that Sun Tzu had to worry was for his own actions.
His crystal clear thoughts flowed out into a guerrilla strategy against a more
heavy and slow enemy. Sun Tzu’s warriors attacked the outposts of the enemy
relentlessly and destabilized the enemy forces. Today’s CEO’s could do much
better with constant and calculated maneuvers, deceptions and surprises.
Resources have to be well utilized and each resource is to be accounted to
capture more business. The elements of costs have to be controlled at each step
as each failure leads to higher costs to the business. Controlled guerilla
tactics and precise calculations can avoid bigger losses due to hasty and
mighty expenditures to meet project timelines. What more- precise calculations
by most modern computers, best trained minds bought at a price and new
generation analytical techniques are always available to the CEO’s of today.
The resources have immense flexibility in their operational modes and need the
correct tweak at the opportune time.
In
War, sheer numbers does not accrue a tangible advantage. Brute military power
has seen many a debacles during the conflict. Similarly, a CEO needs to
understand that mere numbers may not lead to more revenues. Limited numbers
with precise maneuvers and supporting environment can crunch the numbers to the
best advantage for a CEO. The in-depth knowledge about the environment and the
competition puts a CEO in a position of advantage. The CEO must keep an eye on
the horizon and the signs of rising dust must be analyzed correctly. A joining
force can also support the enemy forces and fritter the advantage of the
winning General. A wise General keeps his supporting forces at standby and has
a constant connect with the counterpart General. Invoking support means loss of
precious time to mobilize the support mechanism. This time gap can decide the
fate of the battle. The CEO also has to keep his supporting elements ready for
any eventuality.
General
Sun Tzu demonstrated a moral influence. He remained unfazed as his smaller
force kept the tirade against a larger enemy. His explicit orders and clear
commands aptly supported his moral fiber element. He was willing to accept his
failures and celebrated his success as the success of raw courage of his men.
He dreamt and let his men achieve his dream. A CEO has to equally demonstrate
his moral thread to his team. He has to take the final call when required and
keep a sharp look out for the failures in his team. The team has to be churned
and goals have to be portrayed clearly. The CEO’s actions cannot display
ambiguity. A lonely General is not disturbed by his King and likewise a lonely
CEO is under watch, but not disturbed till a trend emerges. After all, there is
one big difference between a General and a CEO- the War may die any day, but a
competitive Company is always at War.
A
General, who has to win the War, analyzes his battlefield first and this
analysis is absolutely thorough and meticulous. This analysis can be impartial
provided the General is lonely. His thoughts should only be towards his
strategy towards the War and nothing else should disturb his peace and
tranquility. After all, the General is on the battle ground and not the King!
Loose inputs and doses of wishful thinking can derail the best of the plans.
Each order has to be weighed correctly and keeping all the circumstances in the
calculation matrix. The enemy behind the closed door is not visible to the
naked eye. A smoke screen can hide the cannon and it can be moved to a position
of great advantage. A calm General keeps his gaze steady on the theater and his
eyes pick each movement. He does not let the enemy open the door and emerge
with a cocked gun pointing at him. A CEO also keeps analyzing the trends of
market and his reaction is well thought when the market opens. He listens
carefully, analyses thoroughly and acts quickly. The General and the CEO both
have to act at a quick pace to capture the open ground.
The
General does not let his commanders die in vain and neither does he let them
get routed in battle. A rout, if it is happening, can be clearly seen. The
battle worthy soldiers has to be motivated to lead a final assault to derail
the winning enemy. This might spring a new surprise or even demoralize the
enemy. It is a great truth that societies grow again, even after a rout. The
General whether in win or in defeat keeps the challenge alive for his enemy.
The enemy should weigh the challenge and decide future actions. A CEO also
faces the similar dilemma as the Company’s fortunes start oscillating. He has
to fight with his might and smell opportunity even under tight circumstances.
CEO’s decisions can lead to twists in the corporate plans and he should be wise
and bold enough to make those changes.
The
General and the CEO are two sides of the same coin. If the General is the
symbol of authority, then, the CEO is the symbol of prosperity. Authority and
prosperity are invariably and inexplicably linked to each other. They are
rather always entwined in a close embrace. The dilemma is the beginning of a
grand strategy or a deep pitfall. Lonely General and lonely CEOs look hard at
the horizon to align their thoughts and keep striving till they reach their
desired end states. In every clash, one side has to accept the defeat.
Sometimes, it is best not to fight at all and rehash the complete strategy
paradigm.
The
General and the CEO have to stay behind and oversee the unfolding game. The
Commanders would look back for the correct advice. The high position gives
ample opportunity to decipher and generate the correct action. Ensure the
action and let the dilemma fade away into oblivion. Do not let the enemy behind
the closed door to come out all guns blazing. It is better to blow the door
away if it is amply clear that the enemy is hiding within the premises. After
all, the cost of replacement of a door can never equalize the loss of a well
trained human. Suppress the dilemma and ensure the action.
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