BattleField to BoardRoom

Below I enumerate the ten Principles of War with a short description regarding their applicability in the business world.

Selection and Maintenance of the Aim

If we want to lead a successful business endeavour, it is of extreme importance for us to have a clear-cut goal defined; not only do we need to have a goal, but we also have to make sure that?our team understands why have we chosen that goal. This would help the team members to have a better understanding of the objectives, and hence there will be unity of efforts and unity of purpose that will bring the required synergies.

Maintenance of Morale

While we move ahead to achieve our business objectives, there will be days when we will fail, and there will be days when we will not hit our mark despite doing all the hard work. Strong teams prevail over such days to stand up again and attack the problem from a different direction with a renewed vigour. For teams to remain strong in the face of difficulties, it is crucial that they are bonded together well and hence should have high morale. If a group or organisation can maintain this morale in the face of opposition, then there is no reason that we will not prevail.

?Offensive Action

The purpose of business is to gain an advantage over competitors, which demands boldness in the face of competition. As a business leader, it is vital to be on the lookout for the opportunities and be ready to capitalise on the opportunity as and when it arises. As we have been taught in the classes, we need to be like a Cheetah and pounce on the opportunity to progress ahead.

Security

Securing Business Intelligence, developing patents and maintaining the security of the premises or the physical assets held by a business is all very important. Without good security, Competitive Advantage will be lost, and there will be loss of valuable resources, leading to loss of freedom of action.

Surprise

As they say, “It’s all about timing – Correct person at the correct place at the correct time”, businesses have to exploit all the opportunities available to them. Seizing the opportunity and taking full advantage of it with relevant innovation provides significant savings in terms of resources expended.

Concentration of Force

Like in any war field, the resources in the business are also very scarce and hence very valuable. The use of resources have to be prioritised, and the sequence of their deployment has to be planned to seek local advantage, which would provide the path to overall success. Concentrating efforts and resources help the business take on the competitors by focusing on its strengths and defeating the competitor on its chosen ground (Arena).

Economy of Effort

Business leaders know and understand that resources are not in abundance, and hence their objective always is to be as reasonable in the use of resources as possible. Too much resource expended against an aim is both wasteful and inefficient. Using the right kind of resource at the right time and in the right place is of paramount importance.

Flexibility

The plan is the first casualty in the war. And hence it demands that we remain adaptable to developing situations. This calls for agile thinking and swift responses. As business leaders, we will always have a framework for action, and every action will provoke a reaction. So, a business leader needs to remain flexible and make suitable adjustments as per the evolving situation.

Cooperation

For a business to develop and thrive, it must work in a symphony, internally where the different parts of the business work towards a common goal and externally while dealing with its customers and its suppliers. Organisations are collectives that are founded on cooperative behaviour. This fabric of cooperation will be tested under stressful times. Hence, for a business to survive, it is crucial to continuously foster this bond of trust and goodwill both internally and externally.

Sustainability

While it is easy to start a war, the winner generally is the side that can sustain itself while involved in the battle. Similarly, physical, financial and moral sustainability is very critical for any business to survive in this competitive world. Without sufficient means, it will be difficult for the firms to compete in a competitive market, and slowly they will be wiped out from the battlefield.