Who is a master tactician?

A master tactician excels in using the right tactics at the right time, right place and with the right opponent. How his ambit runs? Here are the main highlights about being a master tactician:

In every situation you are in, there are resources further broken into physical resources, human resources, technology and most essentially the time. Planning the allocation of these resources and steering their operationalization depends on the place and the type of enemy one is faced with.

Selecting the right tactics requires the ability to choose the suitable one amongst many that are available and perhaps have probable qualities of being used effectively. Looking at the escalation ladder, an appropriate tactics is cherry-picked based on the premise whether to escalate vertically or horizontally or both together?

Yet the sacred cow is that any and every steps or manoeuvres made must be able to lead one to the achievement of overall strategy. In general, tactical gains by theory do not lead one to achieve business strategy or goals in geoeconomics.

By the way, I have not said anything so far about “opportunity”. The crux of the matter lies in seizing the right opportunity. Master Tactician Sun Tzu just enters the ring with “must do” notions regarding opportunity. One nugget of gold is the following quote: “Opportunities multiply as they are seized”. A word of caution from him subdues us: “You have to get the right opportunity”. Attempting to use sundry opportunities makes you run through your limited resources without getting a positive result. The honorifics is the enemy senses that you are simply desperate.

At the most obvious level, it is the opponent himself who provides you the right opportunity. Sun Tzu concurs with my hypothesis that none other than an opponent gives you prospects to seize upon his weak areas for your own advantages. Put it simply defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself inadvertently, or in many cases foolishly.

Here is an illustration that impacts business strategy amid geoeconomics: America provided the opportunity for China, which was struggling for the last few years to perfect 7 nanometre (nm) microchips in one go when she banned exports of this advanced technology. Surely, necessity is the mother of invention. China put the shoulder to the wheel in developing 7nm chips. Significantly the success she savoured has now rattled America. Contextually 7nm chips account for 90% of semiconductor production and 70% of revenue globally.

 

Cheers!

 

Muthu Ashraff

Business Strategist

Mobile: + 94 777 265677

E-mail: cosmicgems@gmail.com

Blog:   Business Strategist

Avoiding tactical gains, strategic loss

The world is pitched on tactical gains in a big way. Be it in business or military affairs we see the trend that authorities show predilection towards the easy way of getting positive results that are temporary and in most cases transient. Enter strategy and all their actions are put to smithereens.

Tactics are specific actions or steps one undertakes to accomplish his strategy. That being said tactics is a combination of five specifics i.e. fireworks, mobility, security cover, shock therapy and surprise assembled in a platform and delivered in a co-ordinated fashion. If one of the elements fail then tactics as a whole end up giving perhaps tactical gains but leaving a gape in overall strategy.

For the purposes of propaganda, newsworthiness and being seen in the limelight, tactics appear to be savvy indeed. Yet in the final analysis lack of an effective and workable strategy leads to unexpected disaster. Sun Tzu summarises it well thus: “Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat”.

Even then most of the time business warfare as well as military warfare tend to focus on short term gains leaving long term result to happen on its own progression. This is truly a faulty assumption. When all these tactical short term gains are added up without achieving strategic ends then the whole affair is an utter failure. Maurice de Talleyrand’s famous quote: “The Bourbons learned nothing, and have forgotten nothing” comes to my mind.

But there is blessing in disguise for sure. If a firm or military operationalizes gainful tactics and at the same time respective opponent has been blinded to see the real strategy behind these tactics then there is a chance of success if there is going to be one. Once again Sun Tzu clarifies: “All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved”.

Yet caveat is, either a business firm or a national military needs to take a long-term view primarily while pedalling on the short-term steps so that the long terms ends are achieved.

For that to happen business strategy and/or military strategy should be able to relate and reflect on the tactical gains as Sun Tzu mandates: “He who can modify his tactics in relation to his opponent and thereby succeed in winning, may be called a heaven sent commander”.

 

Cheers!

 

Muthu Ashraff

Business Strategist

Mobile: + 94 777 265677

E-mail: cosmicgems@gmail.com

Blog:   Business Strategist

“Doing Nothing” Business strategy

Many of you would be surprised to read the title of this blog: “Doing nothing”.You might ask me: Can this be called a business strategy at all? Well there is time tested strategy of doing nothing in the annals of history.

Great warriors sometimes pass on doing nothing. Take the case of Genghis Khan who saw the Great Statue of the “Bamiyan Buddha” in Afghanistan. After a brief moment of reflection the Great Khan has been reported to have said: “Let’s leave this to history”. Several centuries later the Taliban Terrorists flattened it disregarding the advice of the Khan.

History apart, military affairs is sometimes besotted with incidents when doing the opposite of it can also be equated as doing nothing when someone deliberately chooses to ignore it. Lord Horace Nelson did that during the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801, when the signal 'discontinue the action' was hoisted he ignored it and continued firing. Nelson later on declared that he could not see the signal because he is partially blind. The British succeeded and later Lord Nelson was promoted as commander in chief of the British fleet.

Sun Tzu adds more colour when he values a commander who follows doing nothing strategy thus: “He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight”.

So doing nothing can be applied in different types of circumstances. Personal life military life and in business strategy. Here is a laundry list:

1. There is no need to demonstrate that “You are in action”

2. Where holding the current position is better option

3. When perceiving that no change in status- quo would be forthcoming even if you intervene

4. Doing anything can backfire or be counter productive

5. Circumstances do not warrant accommodating another player in the contest

6. Might as well allow two or three opponents in the ring continue to fight and tire and turn out ultimately as spent forces

7. Keep your powder dry: Be calm and be ready for future action that requires your intervention to set things right

 

Cheers!

 

Muthu Ashraff

Business Strategist

Mobile: + 94 777 265677

E-mail: cosmicgems@gmail.com

Blog:   Business Strategist