The Emperor and His General
I love military history and has studied them since my youth. One important military treatise that I’ve studied as a young lad was The Art of War by Sun Tzu (孙子兵法). I’ve applied many lessons there in my life and dealings with others, but there were also many that I really have a great deal of problems putting into practice in my life.
I have been reflecting a lot recently on how a business owner should handle his top management. Or even how a CEO (who is normally the majority shareholder as well) should handle his various VPs.
I quote Chapter 2 of the book.
How many cases do we have of business owners who do not know how the business works expecting themselves to have their upper management obey their every whim and every wishes? Or even if he knows how the business works, should he actually attempt to direct at a micro level from his command post far away from the action? Or even if he is in the thick of action, shouldn’t he allow his generals, who know their men best, to conduct the tactical strikes the way they know best? Or perhaps we have owners who appoint their people into important posts, without consideration over the best person for the job. I’m sure my readers have many more stories to tell of such “sovereigns”.
I am reminded of this movie Down Periscope, which is a comedy about how a motley crew of a World War 2 submarine commanded by a very unconventional and capable officer overcame the entire forces of the United States Navy to fulfil their mission. The opposing officer (a superior officer who had a ground to grind against the protagonist) actually hobbled his forces by taking over direct command of all forces. Kitten and I gasped, the first time we watched the movie, when he ordered his ships to do full active pinging (sorry, submarine warfare language) – revealing their positions totally! He created morale problems by taking over direct command of the commander’s ship, eventually leading to himself being outwitted, losing his promotion.
Indeed, I quote from Chapter 11.
Any business owner who tries to micromanage his business may one day see losses after losses, as he interferes with the operations of his generals. In today’s context, he may find himself always replacing generals. Not many of us still subscribe to the idea of loyalty to a sovereign.
I quote also Samuel Griffith’s translation of “The Art of War”, which includes an interesting story from the biography of Sun Tzu.
I like the part when Sun Tzu replied the king, “When the commander is at the head of an army, he need not accept orders from the sovereign.” While such a commander would ensure victory for his troops, his career (and perhaps even his head) would go if confronted with a weak or foolish king, as is the case of 袁崇焕 Yuan Conghuan or 岳飞 Yue Fei. How many of us dare to say that to our employer? Even I dare not say I would do so, were I to be placed in such a position one day.
So what should the position of the sovereign, the business owner be? I am reminded of EmperorKangxi, the most respected Qing emperor in history, who was confronted with the problems of Taiwan. The island was controlled by the Ming loyalists, the descendants of the hero who wrestled the island from the Dutch, 郑成功 (Zheng Chenggong or Koxinga), and the Qing government found themselves being outclassed by the navy of the island.
Interestingly, the Communist government found themselves facing the same problem back in 1949, when the Nationalist government escaped to Taiwan. Before then, in 1947, the Nationalist government had taken control of the island by declaring martial law, creating a bloodbath of 28,000 Taiwanese. Again, the lack of a strong navy stopped the full culmination of the civil war as they could not invade the island.
OK, back to Kangxi – when his generals reported the same problems, did he order them to attack or do anything stupid? No, he probed and asked questions, and realised that his navy was out-gunned by the Dutch-designed (not too sure who built them) vessels. He sought out the Dutch and began to build his own fleet for his generals to use. He provided the means to wage war, and leave it to his generals to secure the victory. There’s a reason why China was so strong in his time.
And any business owner of any large enterprise should find himself doing that if he wants his business to thrive during his reign.
References:
Sun Tzu and the Art of Software Project Leadership
Sun Tzu on the Art of War
I have been reflecting a lot recently on how a business owner should handle his top management. Or even how a CEO (who is normally the majority shareholder as well) should handle his various VPs.
I quote Chapter 2 of the book.
12. There are three ways in which a ruler can bring misfortune upon his army:–
13. (1) By commanding the army to advance or to retreat, being ignorant of the fact that it cannot obey. This is called hobbling the army.
14. (2) By attempting to govern an army in the same way as he administers a kingdom, being ignorant of the conditions in an army. This causes restlessness in the soldier’s minds.
15. (3) By employing the officers of his army without discrimination, through ignorance of the military principle of adaptation to circumstances. This shakes the confidence of the soldiers.
How many cases do we have of business owners who do not know how the business works expecting themselves to have their upper management obey their every whim and every wishes? Or even if he knows how the business works, should he actually attempt to direct at a micro level from his command post far away from the action? Or even if he is in the thick of action, shouldn’t he allow his generals, who know their men best, to conduct the tactical strikes the way they know best? Or perhaps we have owners who appoint their people into important posts, without consideration over the best person for the job. I’m sure my readers have many more stories to tell of such “sovereigns”.
I am reminded of this movie Down Periscope, which is a comedy about how a motley crew of a World War 2 submarine commanded by a very unconventional and capable officer overcame the entire forces of the United States Navy to fulfil their mission. The opposing officer (a superior officer who had a ground to grind against the protagonist) actually hobbled his forces by taking over direct command of all forces. Kitten and I gasped, the first time we watched the movie, when he ordered his ships to do full active pinging (sorry, submarine warfare language) – revealing their positions totally! He created morale problems by taking over direct command of the commander’s ship, eventually leading to himself being outwitted, losing his promotion.
Indeed, I quote from Chapter 11.
17. Thus we may know that there are five essentials for victory:
(5) He will win who has military capacity and is not interfered with by the sovereign.
Any business owner who tries to micromanage his business may one day see losses after losses, as he interferes with the operations of his generals. In today’s context, he may find himself always replacing generals. Not many of us still subscribe to the idea of loyalty to a sovereign.
I quote also Samuel Griffith’s translation of “The Art of War”, which includes an interesting story from the biography of Sun Tzu.
Sun Wu requested an audience with Ho-lu, King of Wu. Ho-lu read Sun Wu’s essays, and asked him for a demonstration using 180 young women from the kingdom. Sun Wu divided them into companies and put the King’s favorite concubines in command of each company. Sun Wu ordered them to face right, but the young women just giggled. Sun Wu said, “If orders are unclear, it is the commander’s fault.” So he explained the orders five times. He gave the order to face left, and the women laughed.
Sun Wu said, “If orders are unclear, it is the commander’s fault. But when the orders are clear, and are not carried out, it is the officers fault,” and he ordered the favorite concubines be beheaded. The king saw what was happening and sent a messenger to tell Sun Wu to stop, but he replied, “When the commander is at the head of an army, he need not accept orders from the sovereign.” The concubines were beheaded, and the next favorite concubines were placed in charge of each company.
Next, Sun Wu gave the order to face left, face, right, kneel, and march, and all the women followed his orders without a sound. King Ho-lu recognized Sun Wu’s abilities as a commander, and made him a general in his army.
I like the part when Sun Tzu replied the king, “When the commander is at the head of an army, he need not accept orders from the sovereign.” While such a commander would ensure victory for his troops, his career (and perhaps even his head) would go if confronted with a weak or foolish king, as is the case of 袁崇焕 Yuan Conghuan or 岳飞 Yue Fei. How many of us dare to say that to our employer? Even I dare not say I would do so, were I to be placed in such a position one day.
So what should the position of the sovereign, the business owner be? I am reminded of EmperorKangxi, the most respected Qing emperor in history, who was confronted with the problems of Taiwan. The island was controlled by the Ming loyalists, the descendants of the hero who wrestled the island from the Dutch, 郑成功 (Zheng Chenggong or Koxinga), and the Qing government found themselves being outclassed by the navy of the island.
Interestingly, the Communist government found themselves facing the same problem back in 1949, when the Nationalist government escaped to Taiwan. Before then, in 1947, the Nationalist government had taken control of the island by declaring martial law, creating a bloodbath of 28,000 Taiwanese. Again, the lack of a strong navy stopped the full culmination of the civil war as they could not invade the island.
OK, back to Kangxi – when his generals reported the same problems, did he order them to attack or do anything stupid? No, he probed and asked questions, and realised that his navy was out-gunned by the Dutch-designed (not too sure who built them) vessels. He sought out the Dutch and began to build his own fleet for his generals to use. He provided the means to wage war, and leave it to his generals to secure the victory. There’s a reason why China was so strong in his time.
And any business owner of any large enterprise should find himself doing that if he wants his business to thrive during his reign.
References:
Sun Tzu and the Art of Software Project Leadership
Sun Tzu on the Art of War
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