sun tzu

SYNTHESIS PAPER #3: SUN TZU 1

Synthesis Paper #3: Sun Tzu

Jessica R. Dreistadt

LEAD 710 Historical Perspectives of Organizational Leadership

Eastern University

October 8, 2010


Summary

In The Art of War, Chinese military philosopher Sun Tzu presents a treatise to explicate

the strategic decisions and stances that a warrior and her or his followers must embrace in order

to be triumphant. Leaders, according to Sun Tzu, must be virtuous, forward thinking, and

vigilant. Sun Tzu discusses the dynamics of an effective relationship between leader and

follower and this aspect of The Art of War is primarily written through a human resources frame.

True to its holistic nature, The Art of War can also be understood through the structural, political,

and symbolic frames. Sun Tzu described something quite similar to the team leadership

approach to encourage conformity, compliance, and courageous action with the goal of defeating

the enemy. In addition, some aspects of trait theory and authentic leadership are evident. The

Art of War can help modern organizational leaders realize the importance of proactively

developing strategies in response to circumstances, anticipate threats to internal and external

security and prosperity, and develop a strong countenance based on virtue and reflexivity.

Application of Bolman and Deal

Bolman and Deal point out that globalization requires a “growing dependence on well-

trained, loyal human capital” (2008, 132). Territorial expansion in ancient China, according to

Sun Tzu, also required this human resource. He describes how to use social psychology to

improve followers' tenacity and results. Many of Sun Tzu's strategies would be frowned upon in

American culture today, perhaps even in some areas of the military. For example, if most

organizational leaders intentionally put her or his subordinate “into positions whence there is no

escape, and they will prefer death to flight,” a lawsuit would surely ensue (Stevenson, 1994, XI:

23). Nonetheless, The Art of War provides an example of how leaders can motivate staff to act in


a way that is in concordance with the organization's goals. Although he uses the human

resources frame to describe the relationship between leader and follower, Sun Tzu uses the

structural frame to describe interactions between competing groups. His use of the structural

frame is most evident in his assumption that strategies should change based on the situation, not

the individual characteristics of the people who are involved.

Application of Northouse

According to Northouse, the goal of the leader in team leadership is, “to monitor the team

and then take whatever action is necessary to ensure team effectiveness” (2009, 243). Task,

relational, and environmental actions can be managed to enhance outcomes. Though Sun Tzu

does not elaborate on all of the subareas identified in our text, The Art of War does touch on each

of these three main areas. For example, Book III (13-15) describes three ways that rulers can co-

opt the success of her or his army; these seem to correspond nicely to the three leadership actions

described in Hill's Model (Northouse, 244). Sun Tzu believes that deception is necessary; yet, he

also describes authentic leadership, stating that leaders ought to be sincere and straightforward.

He does not adequately describe how a leader can at once be sincere and deceptive; perhaps this

is a false dichotomy. It is also possible that be believes leaders must be true to themselves and to

their countries, but not necessarily to their followers and enemies in order to be effective. The

first book of the Art of War lists several traits required of a warrior: “wisdom, sincerely (sic),

benevolence, courage and strictness” (Stevenson, Book I:9). In quite a short text, Sun Tzu

touches upon an array of leadership theories.

Conclusion

The Art of War is relevant to a modern discussion of organizational leadership.


Competition among individual actors, organizations, and political entities is unfortunately a

persistent threat to survival. Resources are perceived to be scare and society compels us to

acquire more and more physical, human, and intellectual capital, access to markets, and

revenues. The Art of War offers several key ideas that counterbalance this incessant yearning.

First, it is centered on virtuosity. Second, it recognizes that winning without conflict conserves

resources. Third, it encourages leaders to be proactive and strategic. Finally, The Art of War

offers simple tactical maneuvers that can be applied to modern intra- and inter-organizational

settings.


References

Bolman, L. G. and T. E. Deal (2008). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership. 4th edition. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Northouse, P.G. (2009). Leadership: Theory and practice. 5th edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Stevenson, Daniel C. (1994). The art of war by Sun Tzu. Retrieved from http://classics.mit.edu/Tzu/artwar.html.

sun tzu

Documents