Chapter 4, I decided upon Chapter rather than sections, is on Tactical Dispositions. Since this basically means determining where the other army is, and their condition, there is no straightforward way to match this, so I am going to stretch this into my general project planning scheme.
A bit of history. Before the advent of rapid-repeating firearms, and the British line (the most effective 18th and 19th Century force of firepower IMO), armies would march around each other to determine the most advantageous ground. This did not often end up in actual battles, at times after a day of marching the armies might go home, once gunpowder became part of the war machine this changed. In the American Revolutionary War when the colonial army fought the British, who would form line, the colonists lost because they could not match the firepower, and shooting speed, of the British army. The colonists took to hit and run tactics as a way of harassing the British and use their strengths, while the British formed line the colonists would back off and lay ambush somewhere else. No matter how strong you seem, someone can always find a weakness.
Sun Tzu said: The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited for an opportunity of defeating the enemy.
If I am on a project and want to make sure it’s a success, a lot of the failures lie within me (or at least within my own part) if I have an equipment need or a schedule dependency that is critical but I do not raise it as an issue, then its my fault. My job is to make sure EVERYTHING I need is in place; that my part of the project is on track, following up with other people, making sure they know my schedule and needs helps me get my work done. In this case the enemy is Project Failure, not something to have on the permanent record. If I do not want to see my part lose I need to make sure that I have everything I need to succeed, and win, as this says “old fighters would be sure to have their weapons and armies in place then look upon the enemy to see where the weakness may lay”.
I have had situations in the past where I got so bogged down in my parts of the project I did not talk to people and find out where they were, getting blindsided by someone’s late work did not make me meet my deadline. I was late, and I also had to cut corners, as well as work some long hours, to make up the time, but in the end the blame came down to me. Learning to watch how other people are coming along, listening in the status meetings for the tell-tale signs someone is not on time, checking in personally and seeing how things are progressing, all things I have learned on the front lines and in my defeats.
Security against defeat implies defensive tactics; ability to defeat the enemy means taking the offensive.
In order to maintain progress you need to know where your supporting documentation is, as well as any dependencies, programmatic or otherwise. There is the “bunker mentality” of sitting down in a cube and doing work, occasionally popping up “prairie dog”-like in order to check on free food in the kitchen or see who is around. See my previous example of why this does not work. As a Manager on a project, the expectation is that you know where everyone is, or at least how to find out quickly what the status is; which also implies keeping people alert and doing their part of the project. As a person assigned to the project, the better ones will know where other people are, sometimes even those who are not directly impacting the current work. One of the better people I had working for me in that past knew not only where the people directly affecting her were, but the people THEY depended on, that way she could tell ahead of time what the impact of delays would be.
(Names are changed to protect the innocent….and not so innocent)
Since everything was connected it became easier to know whether Tim would have things done on time if Bob was a little late, by knowing where Bob was Sue could ask Tim where he would be and what Bob’s late work meant to him, Sue could tell where her deadlines would fall.
Sometimes taking the offensive means not just looking at the people and work ahead of you, but the ones behind them, seeing further ahead means being ready for surprises. Think of how many war movies would be shorter if the man in charge had looked beyond the mass of men before them, or even to the sides, to see the sneaky group coming up that would be the surprise in the battle.
To lift an autumn hair is no sign of great strength; to see the sun and moon is no sign of sharp sight; to hear the noise of thunder is no sign of a quick ear.
Ignoring the part about hair, this fits in with being able to see ahead of you. Just because you see the sun, doesn’t mean you should ignore the comet hurtling towards you from the other side. Just because you can hear the thunderclap does not mean that you will hear the people whispering in the next cube. I just wanted to add this one for effect because I like the wording. But its also a good metaphor for being able to see the hidden things, and to not just use a talent directly, but indirectly. Perhaps an early way of saying “think out of the box”?
In respect of military method, we have, firstly, Measurement; secondly, Estimation of quantity; thirdly, Calculation; fourthly, Balancing of chances; fifthly, Victory.
Measurement owes its existence to Earth; Estimation of quantity to Measurement; Calculation to Estimation of quantity; Balancing of chances to Calculation; and Victory to Balancing of chances.
Who knew you could use math to win wars? Especially at a time when really it was about numbers of swords and arrows, and I do mean more than just < or > in determining who outnumbered whom; my Algebra teacher would be proud. Now these five items are interesting, and not just because of the use of them, but by using these five items in the right way there are some good steps of project planning.
- Measurement, originally this seems to be surveying and measurement of the ground, in this case the terrain of the project. What is the environment? What will I need to be successful in this environment? Thinking this through is not only a good mental exercise, but helps in planning the project to its completion
- Estimation of Quantity, Measurement helps very much in estimation. which enables us to form an estimate of the enemy's strength. In other words by taking measurements of what the project entails, we can then determine what it is we need, how much, when we need it and where we can use it. In this case Quantity is both physical and it’s the amount of time needed to complete tasks.
- Calculation, and to make calculations based on the data thus obtained. From knowing what it is that is needed and what time it takes to complete tasks, these can be used together to determine, do we have enough stuff and time to complete by the date? If not, recalculate, and if so then we can go on. Sort of a stop in the decision tree; or it may be circular depending upon how you look at it.
- Balancing of Chances, we are thus led to a general weighing-up, or comparison of the enemy's chances with our own. Now that all the data is calculated, does it look right? Can this be done, is there a nagging doubt that says step X will probably not work right, no matter how much we want it to? This is where luck comes in, and its also the point where Guesstimation is either going to succeed or not.
- Victory, if the latter turn the scale, then victory ensues. So if we guess right, then we are successful, especially if we make the right choices on the way to the end of the project. Or as I like to think of it, if we get lucky we win the lottery.
Just remember when you live in a deadline driven environment the following is what it looks like when you are behind and the end of the quarter is coming.
The onrush of a conquering force is like the bursting of pent-up waters into a chasm a thousand fathoms deep.
4 down only 9 to go! If you are enjoying this, or not, let me know.
