Influence of Sun Tzu on Management Strategy

Sun Tzu and Machiavelli have similar views on preparation before battle. Both believe that appropriate preparation ultimately causes victory to lean in the favor of those with little reliance on circumstance. Machiavelli stated that “rulers maintain themselves better if they owe little to luck.” Leaders prepared for battle will not falter under the weight of pressure unlike opposition who rely on a specific circumstances for their strategy to be effective. Sun Tzu practically implies that the same exact tactic be used by generals of armies. He says, “Therefore, the victorious military is first victorious and after that does battle. The defeated military first does battle and after that seeks victory.” Sun Tzu’s statement seems to provide a more precise strategy which is clearly tailored more towards a military interested in winning battles rather than a ruler governing a principality. Sun Tzu’s directions are all about

Lao-tzu argues: “how could he rejoice in victory and delight in the slaughter of men?” (209). Leaders should seek peace not war because people are happy when their lives are simple and in harmony. How could a mother be happy when her sons are killed at war? And how could fathers be delighted when they spend most of their lives in war, far away from their families? A leader should always try to avoid war. Lao-tzu added: "A leader is best when people barely know he exists; when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” A true leader does not talk too much, but he gets the job

My favorite line of the Soldiers creed is “I am the guardian of freedom and the

Leadership is a vital component that leads effective teamwork. According to Mullins (2010), a good leader will influence his talented staff and their actions will lead the good performance. This report is going to examine the influences of the Ma Yun’s leadership on the Alibaba Group.

            Whenever he looks into the eyes of an enemy soldier, he does not see a man, but sees death staring back at him.  He has no choice; the enemy cannot and will not coexist with him.  It

If anything is known about war, it progressively gets worse throughout history. The weapons have become far more powerful, the losses are much greater, and worst of all, soldiers visions of hell have become a reality. War, centuries ago, seemed to young eager young men as an adventure, a chance for glory, an honorable way to die; however, these opinions shifted as time went on. Many if not most of the soldiers today go to war to defend their country, their loved ones, and everything else they hold dear in the hopes that the battles they fight will one day come to an end and they will be able to come home. Millions of soldiers kept their journals, shared their own war stories, or have had their legends written and passed down throughout the

Is one entitled to risk their life for their country? Is war full of glory and romantic? Throughout the past centuries, the perspective on war has changed through a new understanding of reality. Writers such as Ambrose Bierce and Tim O’Brien provide a realistic presentation of war through their respective narratives, “What I Saw at Shiloh” and “The Things They Carried.” Both authors effectively evoke a sense of sympathy through their tone and diction.

When working with companies, an employee has to wonder from time to time what makes management tick. What is the source of their decision-making practices? Why should people strategize in business or in war? Well first let’s define what is strategy? “It is a plan, method, or series of maneuvers or stratagems for obtaining a specific goal or result: a strategy for getting ahead in the world.” (dictionary.com, 2012) The main purpose of this article is to enhance our ability to think strategically. In addition, identifying how as managers and leaders of all organizational levels can

To begin, in Art of War by Sun Tzu, he refers to war as a designed strategy. He claims, ‘To win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy is the acme of skill.’ (Tzu, 1943, p. 79). This means that a well-designed strategy is to initiate the fuse with the enemy with a non-violent stunt like giving urine to the enemy instead of wine (Tzu, 1943, p. 79). This enrages them causing recklessly thinking and they make the first move to attack and the defendant can be prepared to weaken the attack and defence systems by eliminating the forces. Their defence is weakened and the enemy becomes easy to conquer and overthrow without any more physical acts.

Gallipoli is a film directed by Peter Weir, that was released in 1981. It is based upon World War 1. Gallipoli follows two young Australian Sprinters who join the Army and it shows the naivety of the young Australian Men when they tried to enlist. It follows them through their training and into their battle on the frontline. In not knowing what the future will be, how do we know if something will be a lost cause.

It has been debated that the legendary Chinese tactician, Sun Tzu did not actually exist. Manuscripts partially preserved for over 2000 years are incomplete, and often contain discrepancies. Due to carbon dating, historians conjecture that Sun Tzu’s 13 Chapter text “The Art of War” is an encyclopedic compilation of early strategic techniques that have remained relevant regardless of time, population, or political and military strategy. Irrespective of Sun Tzu’s existence, it is widely accepted that “The Art of War” teachings remain relevant to modern military tacticians and governmental policy makers. Sun Tzu’s tactical legacy can be seen in the United States Department of Defense, where it’s a required addition in

In the primary sources, Sun Tzu's Art of War and Tyrtaeus's Praise of Virtuosity of Citizen Soldier both have a sense on the war aspect. While analyzing and examining both documents the focus will be on: main ideas, speakers and audiences, how the documents reflect the societies, gender, and personal criticisms. Sun Tzu's main idea in the Art of War excerpt is to explain the basic rules of warfare and gives military leaders advice on when and how to fight. Throughout the document Sun Tzu he goes into detail about positional strategy. In the first chapter he uses the strategy "Laying Plans", which is governed by five constant factors: The Moral Law, Heaven, Earth, The Commander, and Method and Discipline.

Another significant lesson on warfare and leadership put forth by Sun Tzu was having the ability to conquer areas with no fighting at all. This lesson also involved the ability to absorb and expand within an area instead of total domination and annihilation. Sun Tzu mentioned, “In the practical art of

Lessons from the Sun Tzu theory of war about potential war between Vietnam and China in 21st Century

Another interpreted quote of Sun Tzu is this: “A victorious army wins its victories before seeking battle; an army destined for defeat fights in the hope of winning”. This can be applied directly to the business world. As I suggested earlier, entrance into a market with low or no competition maximizes the rate of success. If there is nobody to compete against in the beginning, you have already won. It is then the responsibility of new companies in the market to work their way up to where you are. Winning the battle before it has started