Think like water when fighting terrorism

Here's an article from the New Yorker on former Senior Counterinsurgency Advisor (I believe he no longer is) for the State Department David Kilcullen.

Note: The article is 8 pages and this post 775 words.

It got me thinking about, of all things, soccer and how it compares to corporations and government. Each possesses practices that no longer necessarily apply in today’s context. Are they capable of moving with the times?

Soccer offers some interesting examples. The game has evolved dramatically since the day they set the rules/laws in 1848. The game is almost unrecognizable today. The significant difference is that soccer - like most professional sports is now a business.

Another aspect that has changed is the influx of foreigners in European leagues. This has had all sorts of massive implications on the game. For brevity purposes, we will superficially touch on on this here.

In soccer, it's important for clubs that have a high percentage of foreigners that reliance on players to conform readily to an existing structure should be limited. In cases where they do not, managers have to think outside the box if they want to communicate effectively in order to achieve the desired results.

There are two methods I suppose to handle a soccer team composed of many nationalities. One is to treat each individual independently while the other is to treat everyone as one. A coach can, for example, scream at a team filled with one nationality and get his point across. This is not so straightforward, nor is it recommended, when your makeup is cosmopolitan.

This all being said, the coach has an option to either devise a system and follow it to a scientific end in which players must adjust - the common goal of the greater good - or he can tailor the system to revolve around the individual personality and character of the player - or a mercenary approach that fosters team unity.

Both methods have their merits. A skillful coach will choose the right path for his squad.

In today’s environment, however, the latter strikes me as more realistic. Athletes are far more complex than they once were.

The swift thinking and clever manager is not afraid to adopt new ideas. There is no set form or dogma to their tactics. They consider everything in their multi-faceted approach including strategy, training, culture, psychology and history. It is a far more evolved and pragmatic method to employ.

Soccer has shown to be willing to change. After a while, it becomes a matter of survival. But what about safe, established companies in no danger of collapsing? These changes become an article a faith; a change predicated on philosophy. The New Economy has produced eclectic companies that value the worker. The Old Economy is still stuck in other era.

Corporate (and I group sports franchises here) and governmental institutions are still top-heavy and hierarchical. Society is becoming increasingly niche-specialized and mercenary-like in its outlook. People today are less willing to be ignored by mid to upper management.

This is exactly what I witnessed at the bank. The high turnover always made me face how absurd how many good workers were allowed to leave. How could it hemorrhage so much talent and still consider itself innovative and customer oriented? I know banks are laggards when it comes to customer-employee-centric innovations but surely, there had to be a better way to maximize employee productivity?

The bank was good at theory-speak but lacked the enlightened structure to implement anything. The corporate boardroom is often the best place for "groupthink" to settle. Oh dear, how many times was I looked at crooked just for asking a question that remotely challenged established corporate orthodoxy.

When I was a mutual funds specialist for a national call center, the “team leaders” would sometimes solicit ideas from the “trenches.” Nothing ever came of it. In fact, they would often choose the least practical solution to a problem. What a way to increase morale! And when morale is low cynicism sets in.

Recall I mentioned what a modern manager does with a diverse squad in soccer. Does this happen, on average in a major and stable corporation? Of course, in soccer only the elite managers with the means have the luxury while the lower to middle table teams generally have other options to consider. However, for our case here, we are using elite clubs and corporations. Corporations are cumbersome. They need to increase their footwork - excuse the low-grade pun.

Independent thought is crucial but not encouraged enough. As far as I can tell, the banks have in fact gone the other way; they have become far too mechanized and rigid in the client-employee-policy triangle. I would argue it is corrosive to that relationship.

Remember the scene on the The Simpsons when Principle Skinner was hitting the "Independent Thought Control" button when faced with Lisa's inquisitive perceptions? If this existed the banks would love to install one.

I was never in government but as far (or near) as I can tell it is also in need of some rethinking. Too many people, like the bank from a past time are in power. If there are young people they are too marginalized to make any impact. Either they should step aside or embrace a new way of thinking; one predicated on cunning agility.

We often hear about how sports have changed for the worse. We also hear this in politics. For example loss of independent thinkers and leaders; the "golden" age of diplomacy is gone. Etc.

Things aren't so simple anymore. As we all know, it's the information age and people are highly mobile. The cubicle worker is long gone. Information is sent at the push of a button to millions and the U.S. (ironically since they invented the Internet) is hopelessly a laughable dinosaur on this front.

Which finally brings us to Kilcullen’s approach to fighting counterinsurgency. His theory seems so obvious it may be taken for being too simplistic. It isn’t. The idea of waging an information war (one of the key elements posited by Kilcullen) in a struggle to defeat insurgents is one the blogging community is certainly equipped to take on. Think of us as the Mafia. Recall that the Mafia were enlisted to protect American harbours during the World War II.

Indeed, none of this is new. However, implementing it will take true courage and wisdom.

Whether in sports, business or government, Sun Tzu's idea of thinking like water is appropriate. Fight like water or be stuck in mud.

Gosh I wish I had time to ponder this all further.