Warrior Sun Tzu example essay topic

Leadership by Sun Tzu Over three thousand years ago a warrior surfaced from the ranks of the Country of Wiu who brought leadership and management into the business environments for the twenty first century. Warrior Sun Tzu, commander of the military troops in what is now the country of China, developed training concepts to better manage and effectively defeat the enemy forces he battled against. These training skills are used by present day military, police tactical units, chief executive officers and managers across the United States. Sun Tzu's style of management was more, managing by threat. One example of this was during a training exercise involving a company of female soldiers. The drill being instructed was for forward marching, left and right turns while in rank and file order.

As Sun Tzu observed, several of the females were laughing, turning in the wrong direction and failing to follow the drilling lieutenant's orders. Sun Tzu a stopped the training and advised the lieutenant with the following orders, "teach them on to march in line, turn right and left and stop on your command". The lieutenant returned to the ranks and the soldiers still would not follow the order. Sun Tzu advised the Lieutenant the exact same orders and as the lieutenant returned to march the soldiers they still did not follow the command. Sun Tzu ordered the lieutenant's head to be taken off. Immediately following this order the soldiers began to march in rank and file with precision.

Rudy Guilin stated, "Relentless preparation means not just preparing for disasters but anticipating potential trouble". Sun Tzu utilized the extreme use of consequences for the training violations. He demonstrated this preparation issue with the commanding officer, as a result, the others would understand the seriousness of training. "Generally in war, the best policy is to take a state intact; to ruin it is inferior to this...

For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill". Sun Tzu Sun Tzu calls this the need to "win-all-without-fighting". Since the goal of your business is to survive and prosper, you must capture your market. However, you must do so in such a way that your market is not destroyed in the process. A company can do this in several ways, such as attacking parts of the market that are under-served or by using subtle, indirect, and low-key approach that will not draw a competitor's attention or response.

What should be avoided at all costs is a price-war. Research has shown that price attacks draw the quickest and most aggressive responses from competitors, as well as leaving the market drained of profits. The Western approach to warfare has spilled over into business competition, leading most companies to launch head-on, direct attacks against their competitors strongest point. This "macho" approach to business strategy leads to battles of attrition, which end up being very costly for everyone involved. Instead, you should focus on the competition's weakness, which maximizes your gains while minimizing the use of resources. This, by definition, increases profits.

"Know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles you will never be in peril". Sun Tzu To find and exploit your competitor's weakness requires a deep understanding of their executives's strategy, capabilities, thoughts and desires, as well as similar depth of knowledge of your own strengths and weaknesses. It is also important to understand the overall competitive and industry trends occurring around you in order to have a feel for the "terrain" on which you will do battle. Conversely, to keep your competitor from utilizing this strategy against you, it is critical to mask your plans and keep them secret..