Ceteris Paribus

Introduction

Sun Tzu’s The Art of War is an excellent piece of writing about military tactics used to gain advantages and win in battle. It covers many different areas from how and when to use fire and water as military tactics to the five different types of spies and how to use those spies best. It is a timeless piece that has had many different translations over the ages. The translation I read was created in 1910 by Lionel Giles and also includes additional commentary by him as well. Giles was the Keeper of the Department of Oriental Printed Books and Manuscripts at the British Museum in London, England. The edition is broken into two parts. The first contains Giles’ translation of the art of war with the accompanied Chinese text. The second contains Giles’ translation as well as additional commentary which provides more insight to the meaning of each of the different passages.

Giles’ Commentary

The commentary was extremely effective and helped to provide more understanding of the sometimes ambiguous passages. It also contains notes on other scholar’s translations and how they differ. This is one of the parts that was quite surprising to me. Many of the translations disagree with one another, sometimes taking completely opposite viewpoints. For example, Giles’ version would have “do not plunder” and an alternative would have “do plunder.” Since I cannot read the Chinese text for myself, I am left to read the reasoning behind each scholar’s argument and tend to lean towards Giles’ well reasoned translation.

The edition is also very helpful because it provides historical background to both the text and its application in more modern life. It attempts to give a timeline of Sun Tzu’s life and offers stories about some of his actions. In addition, the commentary includes example battles which truly bring the passages to life. This is one of the most important aspects of this edition and makes passages much more valuable. It also allows the reader to learn more about Chinese history. One of the main weaknesses of the text of The Art of War is a lack of credibility. Since many of the readers do not know enough history to determine whether these strategies have been effective, the reader has to choose to either trust or not trust the advice given. The commentary in this edition lends credibility to the ancient text and provides a more complete picture of what Sun Tzu’s strategies were.

The introduction of the translation is one area which could use improvement. Giles uses two different names for Sun Tzu which makes it hard to follow at first, and also tends to pack together too much information. Instead, it could have been more effective to tell the story and left the historical documentation as footnotes. The introduction does provide the feeling that Giles has completed significant research, which increases the credibility of his translation.

Sun Tzu’s The Art of War

For a general going into battle, almost every part of The Art of War is useful. The translation made by Giles is simple, direct, and clear. It provides an easy read even without the commentary. For someone leading a business, more work is required to extract meaning from the passages. I have decided that the most effective analysis of the book would be to list the main passages which I wanted to apply to business strategy and also the passages that I thought should never be applied to business strategy. By doing this, I hope to display some of the strengths and weaknesses of the text as it applies to business strategy.

Applying Tzu to Business Strategy

“The commander stands for the virtues of wisdom, sincerely, benevolence, courage, and strictness.” (114)

These five traits continue to apply to effective leaders of companies today.

“Without constant practice, the officers will be nervous and undecided when mustering for battle; without constant practice, the general will be wavering and irresolute when the crisis is at hand.” (116)

Always utilize scenario planning so that the company may be able to decisively switch paths if needed.

“Cleverness has never been seen associated with long delays.” (120)

“The value of time—that is, being a little ahead of your opponent—has counted for more than either numerical superiority or the nicest calculations with regard to commissariat.” (121)

If the opportunity is present, act on it. Delaying may cause any advantage to disappear.

“Only one who is thoroughly acquainted with the evils of war can thoroughly understand the profitable way of carrying it on.” (121)

Extremely competitive environments can be bad for everyone involved. For example, only begin a price-cutting scheme when you know it will not turn into a price war that will damage everyone.

“Rewards are necessary in order to make the soldiers see the advantage of beating the enemy.” (123)

Align the incentives of your employees with the company’s incentives in order to make everyone successfully work together toward a common goal.

“Supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting.” (125)

Direct competition may not always be the best strategy. Look for alternatives and ways to win without having to use tactics that may deplete the company’s resources.

The Five Essentials for Victory (131)

1) “He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight.”

2) “He will win who knows how to handle both superior and inferior forces.”

3) “He will win whose army is animated by the same spirit throughout all its ranks.”

4) “He will win who, prepared himself, waits to take the enemy unprepared.”

5) “He will win who has military capacity and is not interfered with by the sovereign.”

In order to be successful, compete at the right times, use your employees effectively, maintain a consistent culture, prepare thoroughly, and do not micromanage.

“Do not press a desperate foe too hard.” (170)

If you compete so heavily that the competition feels the danger of losing everything, they will fight even harder and may end up damaging you through competition wars.

“By shifting camp and taking circuitous routes, he prevents the enemy from anticipating his purpose.” (224)

Use techniques to ensure that competitors cannot anticipate your actions.

“Do not give your reasons for any order.” (233)

This is an area that should not be used in business strategy. Employees tend to work more effectively when they know why they are working and for what end purpose, so spell this out to them.

“Move not unless you see an advantage; use not your troops unless there is something to be gained; fight not unless the position is critical.” (246)

Do not complete unnecessary actions. Make sure there is a purpose and something to gain from any new actions you undertake.

“The converted spy knows how the enemy can best be deceived.” (257)

Pay your employees well to ensure that they do switch to working for your competitors. Be willing to pay the employees of competitors well to receive their insight and skill and get them to switch to your company.

Conclusion

Overall, The Art of War by Lionel Giles is an excellent book with many applications to business strategy. Giles’ translation and commentary are effective in providing background information and context, leading to a better understanding and increased ease of application. The translation is simple, accurate, and direct, creating for an easy read which can be enjoyed by readers from any discipline.

Giles, Lionel. The Art of War by Sun Tzu. Texas: El Paso Norte Press, 2005.

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