The Art Of War Applied To Construction

By Ted Garrison, Garrison Associates

Twenty-five hundred years ago, Sun Tzu wrote The Art of War. His advice has been used for centuries to guide leaders in war, in politics and in business. Obviously the construction industry isn’t a war, even though at times it certainly seems as if we are under siege. There are several reasons why The Art of War and later adaptations apply to business and specifically to the construction industry.

First, it is important to understand that not only Sun Tzu’s philosophy, but ancient Chinese wisdom in general was more about avoiding war than about fighting. In business this means avoiding conflict. Further, Sun Tzu’s basic concept is that with a sound strategy, you will win. With a great strategy, you will win without fighting.

Robert Greene, in the 33 Strategies of War, stated, “The word ‘strategy’ comes from the ancient Greek word strategos, meaning literally “the leader of the army. Strategy in this sense was the art of generalship.” In business the general is the CEO. The problem today is that too often the focus is not on strategy, but on tactics. In essence, the business leader focuses on short-term thinking instead of thinking long-term. To help battle this tendency, the author will provide a number of articles on strategic thinking based on the works of Sun Tzu. These strategies can significantly improve the construction industry’s performance and profitability.

The problem is that too many business executives are trapped, fighting the daily battles. They don’t have time to think strategically about their companies. Peter Drucker wrote in The Daily Drucker, “Unless the short-range plans—that is, the decisions on the here and now—are integrated into one unified plan of action, they will be expedient, guess, and misdirection.” He further added, “Long-range planning should prevent managers from uncritically extending present trends into the future, from assuming that today’s products, services, markets, and technologies of tomorrow, and above all, from dedicating their resources and energies to the defense of yesterday.”

In reality, the term strategic planning is really a misnomer because it’s less about planning than it is about thinking. Instead it should be called “strategic thinking” because it’s really an analytical thinking process about how to best commit resources to action.

An important variation of the original theme is that strategy is just the art of the generals. In the days of Sun Tzu, the general often wanted to keep his soldiers in the dark with regard to strategy in order to prevent mutiny or rebellion. He restricted their knowledge to just what they needed to know to do the specific tasks assigned. However, in today’s complex world, it’s critical that everyone be involved in the strategic aspects of the company. Therefore, this series of articles is not just for the CEO; it’s for everyone concerned about the performance and profitability of the company.

It’s critical that everyone understands that unless each individual’s activities are contributing value, that task or individual’s job is at risk. This requires a fundamental change in the way CEOs and management think about the workforce. Employees are not an expense. They are a resource that delivers value, and their activities should measure the value delivered. The question that should be asked about each employee is this: Does that employee deliver more value than her cost? If the answer is no, ask this: Why does that position exist?

When looking at a business from a strategic perspective, it becomes evident that a business is like a three-legged stool. One leg represents the client, another leg the employees, and the final leg the company. If any one of the three legs fails, the stool falls over. Obviously if the business doesn’t take care of its clients’ needs, then it will have no clients and the business will fail. If the business doesn’t take care of its employees, then they will vote with their feet and leave. In part this explains why the construction industry has trouble finding enough qualified and skilled workers and managers. Keep in mind it doesn’t matter what management thinks about the quality of the job; the worker’s opinion is the only one that matters. They compare their other opportunities against their opportunity in construction and draw their own conclusions. Finally, if the company doesn’t take care of itself (i.e., doesn’t make a sufficient profit), then it will not survive.

To help companies obtain a more balanced and profitable approach to business, future articles will provides strategies based on The Art of War and adapted to the construction industry.

Ted Garrison is a catalyst for change and construction business visionary. An author, speaker and consultant, Ted is also the host of the Internet radio program New Construction Strategies.com. He can be reached at Ted@TedGarrison.com.

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