STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

REVIEW OF THE BOOK THE ART OF WAR

INTRODUCTION
Sun Tzu Biography : Author and Military Strategist Famous for : Being a Chinese philosopher and military strategist best known for his book called "The Art of War". Tzu details : Born - 544 BC China / Died 496 BC China

Sun Tzu was a general who served the state of Wu during the 5th century B.C. Was born in the state of Qi in ancient China. His family were members of the shi, an ancient class of aristocrats.

 After working throughout the country, the ruling king, King Helu of Wu, hired Sun Tzu as a general in 512 BC. His victories then inspired him to write The Art of War Historians place the writing of The Art of War in the Warring States Period (476221 BCE), based on its description of warfare. The period was a time of constant war among seven nations

 Supreme Excellence consists in breaking the enemys resistance without fighting. M & A King Fisher s takeover of breweries to expand their liquor business If the words of command are not clear then it is the fault of the leader. Eg Anna Hazare

Prepare defense to repeal against any attack Ground Ease or Difficult. Easy Ground Numero Uno Amul Offense is the best defense. Difficult Terrain Entering into a Foreign Market The success of Amul , Al Adil, Shan Brand in Dubai.

Land Open or Constricted Open Land Marathas at Panipat Competitor can attack from any side. If it is closed from some side If the Co has either competitive advantage or some USP eg. SAB TV was the only channel which is humorous.

Victory is the main objective of any war. If it is delayed or prolonged then weapons are blunted and the morale of the army is depressed. Speed and Swiftness is the key to winning any War / Market Place. Nokia v/s Samsung.

Offensive Strategies
All available resources should be used against the enemy. First attack the enemys strategy and plan Then attack the enemys alliances Finally attack the enemys army.

Know your enemy and also know yourself that is The key to winning any war. Know your enemys weakness and your strength. Invincilibility lies in defense and the possibility Of a Victory in attack. A victorious army always Wins its battle before seeking a battle. A army Destined to defeat, fights in the hope of winning The War.

Strategies
If the Enemy is at Ease, Be Ready to Defeat Him. ICICI V/s SBI If the Enemy is Settled Be Ready to Move Him. Bajaj Allianz v/s LIC Appear at unusual places, where the Enemy has to Rush to defend. Citi Bank first introduced credit card in the 70s. Avoid the Enemys Strengths and Attack its Weakness. ICICI targeted technology

Maneuver
Attack when enemy morale is low. Never Attack when the enemy is advancing and is organized. Eg Chh Shivaji Maharaj. Dispersion and Concentration of Army to puzzle. Napoleon s Military Strategy Use Speed to divert the enemys attack.

Don'ts of the War

Never camp on a low lying ground. Do not enter into business which are alien to you. HLL in Ayurvedic Segment with Ayush Soap, Shampoo and Hair Oil On a communicating ground, unite with your Allies. Godrej has taken over Darling and Amigo brands from a African company. Do not linger on a isolated land. Do not venture into Business ventures which are forsaken by competitors.

On a enclosed ground be resourceful. In a highly competitive market use a Generic Strategy On death ground, fight. When you have head on competition , defend your turf Amul V/s Other Packaged Milk. Some Troops Not to Fight. - Understand your Competitor. Regional Player like Balaji v/s Lays

Some Cities not to Assault. Never attack the Numero Uno Some Grounds not to be contested. Some monopoly business not to enter.

March
Encamp on High Ground Barista Coffe in a Udipi Culture Fight Downhill Use Defensive Strategy Let your Enemys half army cross the river and then attack and defeat him First see what the Competitor is doing and then accordingly beat his strategy. Apples iPad v/s Samsungs Galaxy and HPs touch pad

Terrains
Accessible Land Enemy can traverse with ease- Barriers to Entry / Exit is easier then more competion. Entrapping Land Easy to get out, difficult to Return. Indecisive Land Equally dangerous for enemy and us. Rivalry among competitor. Constricted Land Block the pass and await the Enemy. Bargaining Power of Supplier is Weak. Communicative Ground Accessible for both Threat of Substitute.

Tactics
When Ten to Enemys One, surround him. When five times the Enemys army, attack. If double the strength, divide him. If equally matched, engage him. If weaker numerically, withdraw. If unequal, elude him.

Deception
When capable, pretend incapacity. Chh. Shivaji When active, pretend incompetent-Chh. Shivaji When near, make it appear as you are far away. Napoleon s strategy of retreating and attack. When far away, show as though you are near. Offer enemy a bait and lure him.- Flanking Pretend being Disorganized and then attack Enemy Guerilla Warfare

 Understanding this book is both interpretation & understand sun Tzu's philosophies on war. The Intelligent Mind Will Find All Measure Of Ways To Overcome Even The Most Difficult Challenges, Up To And Including Winning A War With Another Human Being. E.g. : Trade unions (strike) , Constant war with the competitors.

INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK

ITS STRATEGICAL USE

Understanding Sun Tzu on the Art of War is in use By:

'Know the enemy, Know yourself, And victory Is never in doubt, not in a hundred battles.'

THE

LEARNING

The book is about how to fight wars without actually having to battle.

Importance of positioning in strategy and that it Is affected by objective conditions in the physical environment and the subjective opinions of competitive environment. strategy requires quick and appropriate responses to changing conditions
It gives tips on how to outsmart ones opponent so that physical battle is not necessary. E.g. : 5 factor model theory , SWOT analysis

LEARNING (cont..)
The Art of War is about far more than war. It is about any sort of struggle or confrontation. you can easily apply the techniques to business, politics, or any other place that contention or conflict exists. A large part of the writings deal with leadership and the best qualities of a leader

Leadership is a matter of intelligence, trustworthiness, humanness, courage, and sternness.

The book is more a philosophy on life than a guide to war; people attracted to Eastern philosophy will quite likely get the most out of it.

THE ART IF WAR: IN BRIEF

Sun Tzu's The Art of War is undisputedly one of the best-selling leadership books of all time. THE ART OF WAR. Written in China over two thousand years ago.

Sun Tzu's The Art of War provides the first known attempt to formulate a rational basis for the planning and conduct of military operations. The Art of War is a Chinese military treatise written during the 6th century BC by Sun Tzu.
It is Composed of 13 chapters, each of which is devoted to one aspect of warfare

 First translated into a European language in 1782 by French Jesuit Jean Joseph Marie Amiot,influencing Napoleon, the German General Staff, and even the planning of Operation Desert Storm. Leaders as diverse as Mao Zedong, VO Nguyen Giap, and General Douglas MacArthur have claimed to have drawn inspiration from the work. As one of the oldest and most famous studies of strategy, it has had a huge influence on military planning, business tactics, and beyond.

THE ART OF WAR IN BRIEF (cont..)

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS

The Art Of War consists of 13 essays each of which is described in few lines below:

ESSAY ONE(Estimates): o Sun Tzus first essay titled, Estimates, begins with the premise that the art of war is vital to the state. o five constants to weigh in ones deliberations
o By thinking, assessing and comparing these points you can calculate a victory, deviation from them will ensure failure. o Sun Tzu suggested that war must be fought: In the shortest possible time; at the least possible cost in lives and effort; with infliction on the enemy of the fewest possible casualties.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY TWO(Waging War): o These themes include being swift in war; never prolong war because it is expensive.

o It explains how to understand the economy of war and how success requires making the winning play.
o If prices go up, the poor lose. Therefore, use the enemys resources. Victory is the main object of war. o There has never been a protracted war from which a country has benefited.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY THREE(Offensive Strategy): o This essay states that to capture is better than destruction. o To win without fighting and to break the enemies resistance without the shedding of blood is excellence. o the worst is to besiege walled cities because this leads to a prolonged war.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY FOUR(Dispositions): o States that one may know how to conquer without being able to do it; knowledge must be coupled with wisdom. o How you must recognize opportunities, not try to create them One must be skilled in defense to hide and be skilled in offense to attack and burst forth. o Get the power of knowledge to control success.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY FIVE (Energy): o Energy explains the use of creativity and timing in building your momentum. o Using a large army requires better, sophisticated communications. o Know the science of weak points and strong. o E.g. : Delegation, Decentralization, SWOT analysis.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY SIX(Weaknesses and Strengths) : o Weak Points & Strong explains how your opportunities come from the openings in the environment caused by the relative weakness of your enemy in a given area. o By holding out baits, we can cause the enemy to approach and inflict damage, while the enemy cannot approach.

o Be swiftly on the move to places you are least expected.

o You can be assured of victory if you attack undefended places.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY SEVEN(Maneuver): o Maneuvering explains the dangers of direct conflict and how to win those confrontations when they are forced upon you. o Maneuvering with an army is advantageous, with an undisciplined mob, disastrous. o The general receives his commands from the sovereign. o Variation in Tactics focuses on the need for flexibility in your responses. It explains how to respond to shifting circumstances successfully.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY EIGHT(The Nine Variables): o This essay is about how to respond to various situations when you move to new enemies territory(new firm). o the wise leader considers advantages and disadvantages and blends the two. o Let the unknown and undetermined be factored into our calculations. o Be flexible. o If we are in the midst of difficulties always be ready to seize an advantage.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY NINE(Marches): o Terrain looks at the three general areas of resistance (distance, dangers, and barriers) and the six types of ground positions that arise from them. o All army's should prefer high ground and sunny places. o If you are careful and camp on hard ground and thus keep the army healthy, you are on the road to victory.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY TEN(Terrain ):
o Sun Tzu classifies ground according to its nature. o The six kinds of terrain: accessible ground, entangling ground, temporizing ground, narrow passes, precipitous heights, positions at a great distance from the enemy

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY ELEVEN(The Nine Variables of Ground):

o deals with ground in respect to the employment of troops and may be classified as dispersive, frontier, key, communication, focal, serious, difficult, encircled, and death.

o The Nine Situations describe nine common situations (or stages) in a campaign, from scattering to deadly, and the specific focus you need to successfully navigate each of them.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY TWELVE(Attack by Fire): o Sun Tzu describes various methods of attacking by fire and the medium used to employ fire. o It examines the five targets for attack, the five types of environmental attack, and the appropriate responses to such attack. o Fire cannot always be used but equipment for setting fires must always be on hand. Be prepared for everything. o If you cannot succeed, do not use troops. If you are not in danger, do not fight.

ABOUT ITS CHAPTERS(cont..)

ESSAY THIRTEEN(Employment of Secret Agents): o Sun Tzu writes spies are a most important element of war for upon them depends the army's ability to move.

o The Use of Spies focuses on the importance of developing good information sources. o specifically the five types of sources and how to manage them. o Importance of MIS for business

All the 13 chapters in this book cover the strategies natural included as to how to fight the enemy and how gain victory without much fuss. It basically follows the principle, if you know both yourself and your enemy, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss.

The book also gives basic battle standards Wind, forest, fire and mountain. This book covers all the ancient strategies which are used by the Japanese and is used by the Europeans now.

Strategic Position
You have a position in every situation you face... if you dont know it.. then it is simply a position swinging in the air. Nevertheless, when others who understand strategy meet you... they will know your strategic position and will be ready to overtake you in any challenge with them.

 Your strategic position is never strong or weak... it is only strong or weak in relation to something or someone else. Any strategic position has five elements that define it.

The Mission The Climate The Ground The Leadership The Methods

The Mission
Mission is what connect all the elements of strategy together, and with the people. Without a clear and correct mission, we are only serving someone else's mission and not our own. Finally the mission is what unify or create unity between the leader of the business, the people working in business and the customers.

 It is not good enough to create a mission stating that you will be the best company in this sector or another. A mission is much more serious than that.
President Kennedy during his visit to NASA bumped into a cleaner in one of the corridors... he asked him What do you do here? The man replied Mr. President... I am putting a man on the moon. Well now this is an organization with a mission

The Climate
The climate is about What is changing that is
creating an opportunity for your business and the timing for suitability to all involved, employees and customers. Climate is what generally gives a strategy an edge and where all opportunities flow from, created and sustained. In an age of fast communication and the global village, climate has changed for example in the travel industry

 Google, Yahoo, Amazon, eBay and the rest saw a similar climate change and jumped at the opportunity to create their own empires. What is changing?; is your source of creating a business to succeed and flourish.

The Ground
The Ground is where you chose to compete. There is difficult ground and an easy one; there is intersected ground and a dangerous one. Chose your ground and where to compete wisely. Chose the ground where your strength matches your competitors weakness.

 Thus creating a competitive advantage that you will certainly need in order to win. New grounds are being created every day. The Internet and the World Wide Web did not exist 10 years ago. Now Google in mere 7 years of operation is getting bigger and more profitable than HSBC Bank or Bank of America.

The Leader
Caring Concern for the people and the customers Intelligence So that you see the opportunity and the changing climate Courage that you take actions to capitalize on opportunities Discipline Tough but fair to manage the business Trustworthiness So that your people and customers can trust and follow you

The Method
The Method is the art that you apply to your business. Strategy, IT Systems, Processes, Sales and Marketing tactics, Are all in the realm of Methods that your business needs to get right from the outset. Having defined your mission, everything else will fall into place and no longer will you find creating a sales strategy or marketing one such a difficult arena.

Advancing a Position in Business

Advancing our position comes from applying specific strategies with the aim of strengthening the five strategy elements of our position to match or exceed that of the opponent. Thus securing our success in the challenge before the challenge even begins

Advancing a Position in Business

Information to uncover new opportunities Focus to aim on the best possible opportunity Action to take advantage of that opportunity Position to get the reward and begin a new advance

Information
PESTLE ANALYSIS SWOT ANALYSIS 5 FACTOR MODEL OF MICHEAL PORTER

FOCUS
Strategy that is best depending on circumstances and your competitive position.

ACTION
Devising Tactics to take advantage of this position. Battle of Waterloo was fought under the guidance of British General Wellingdon who used the retrieving Austrian troops to attack Napoleon's army as a flanking attack and first time, Napoleon was defeated.

POSITION
Defend once position and advance further ; Maintain once market share and try to capture more.