Essay - Modern Applications of Sun Tzu and Machiavelli Business is War...

Modern Applications of Sun Tzu and Machiavelli

Business is war, and the tactics of warfare and diplomacy make good business. Long before modern ***** leaders gave advice breaking down a market into different strategic target areas or segmenting competitors ***** a 'Strengths/Weaknesses/Opportunities/Threats' framework known as SWOT, ***** Chinese warrior ***** Tzu wrote the "art ***** war, then, is governed by five constant factors, to be taken into account in one's deliberations, when seeking to determine the conditions obtaining in the field. These are: (1) The Moral Law; (2) Heaven; (3) E*****h; (4) The Commander; (5) Method and d*****cipline." (I.3-4)

In other words, a leader in a military or a business environment must have a full and accurate appraisal of him or herself as a *****. He or she ***** h*****ve an accurate internal ***** external ***** of the characters of the individuals he or ***** is leading, as well the environment into the army or product proceeds. Likewise, Machiavelli's cl*****sic The Prince is broken down ***** a series ***** analytic rubrics of different environments to show a leader must proceed in different ways, depending on how a principality was acquired, if ***** force, for example, or by democratic means.

***** Machiavelli, and to a lesser extend, Sun Tzu have been criticized for their ruthlessness. But they were not amoral philosophers. Sun Tzu wrote in "The Art ***** War" that without ethics, or moral law, "people will ***** be ***** complete accord with their ruler, so that they will follow ***** regardless of their lives, undismayed by any danger," as they must in a combative situation. (I.5) Loyalty is key when entering a competitive environment, from ***** practical perspective. People must fight ***** someone ***** something ***** *****lieve, else their loyalty to the ***** and to the cause ***** be in doubt. Hence ***** need for basic training in the ***** today, and corporate orientations that stress the philosophy of the company, as well as technical aspects of work. Yet th***** sense of ***** is not enough—heaven and earth ***** also be strong, that ***** ***** leader must ***** have an ***** appraisal and a calculate response to the seasonal needs, ***** the market, ***** ***** of the outer lying word, to be able to ***** wisdom as a commander, and infuse discipline in his troops. (I.6) A ***** moves ********** ***** he or she has lesser troops at his or her comm***** than the enemy, just as small company may adopt a m*****e specific *****nd targeted strategy when releasing a new product in a market dominated by a l*****rger corporation.

This stress on morality as well as tactical strategy ***** seem antithetical to Machiavelli's advice to The Prince, which is *****ten read as a purely ***** text. But both le*****ders counsel not higher aims, but what ***** tactically practical, and having a r*****llying cause is necessary ***** inspire the troops, ad ***** as to know ***** enemy. Both leaders also give advice as to how to win over different nations,