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Sun Tzu and the Art of Business: Six Strategic Principles for Managers

mark mcneilly sun tzu

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More than two millennia ago the famous Chinese general Sun Tzu wrote the classic work on military strategy, The Art of War . Now, in Sun Tzu and the Art of Business, Mark R. McNeilly shows how Sun Tzu's strategic principles can be successfully applied to modern business situations. Here are
really two books in McNeilly's synthesis of Sun Tzu's ideas into six strategic principles for the business executive, plus the entire text of Samuel B. Griffith's popular translation of The Art of War . Within, McNeilly explains how to gain market share without inciting competitive retaliation,
how to attack a competitor's weak points, and how to maximize the power of market information for competitive advantage. He also demonstrates the value of speed, preparation, and secrecy in throwing the competition off-balance, employing strategy to beat the competition, and the need for character
in successful leaders. In his final chapter, McNeilly presents a practical method to put Sun Tzu and The Art of Business into practice. By using modern examples throughout the book from GE, Microsoft, AT&T, BMW, Southwest Airlines, FedEx, and many others, he illustrates how, by following the wisdom
of history's most respected strategist, executives can avoid the pitfalls of management fads and achieve lasting competitive advantage.

272 pages, Paperback

First published November 14,1996

This edition

Format
272 pages, Paperback
Published
April 13, 2000 by Oxford University Press
ISBN
9780195137897
ASIN
0195137892
Language
English

More editions

About the author

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mark mcneilly

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Mark is the author of two books on Sun Tzu's Art of War, both published by Oxford University Press. Sun Tzu and the Art of Business: Six Strategic Principles for Managers helps business people apply Sun Tzu's strategic philosophy to business problems.

Mark has twenty-four years of experience in the IT industry working for IBM and graduated with honors from the University of Minnesota's MBA program. Mark currently is leading the corporate branding strategy at a Fortune 500 company.

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Community Reviews

Rating(4.2 / 5.0, 24 votes)
5 stars
11(46%)
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24 reviews All reviews
Profile Image for Kimberly .
OurBoySouichi
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Some useful interpretation of sun tzu's art of war in terms of the world of modern business. Essentially the main lesson from the book is to avoid rushing head on into conflict with business rivals that would deplete your own resources, and leave you vulnerable once you have taken over or defeated said rival.

The book was a bit repetitive and could have been a bit shorter which is the reason for the low rating.
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CardcaptorMadoka
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Find some interesting ideas, but looking at the bigger picture, book seemed already out of date. Times have changed, so have the world. Peoples will find some really interesting points, but don`t take everything for granted.
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MissHades
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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The world of business is like a battleground. There’s a war going on – for customers, visibility, and market supremacy. So how do you come out on top? How can you force your competitors into a retreat, capture their territory, and emerge victorious?
کاربرد هنر جنگ تسو در استراتژی کسب و کار
That’s where these blinks come in. Based on the philosophy of ancient Chinese military general Sun Tzu, they explain how you can use classic strategies of warfare to prosper in business.

Sun Tzu wrote The Art of War over 2,000 years ago, but the wisdom and insights from his famous text are still relevant today. From leadership to resources and surprise-attacks, this is your go-to manual for beating your competition and securing long-term prosperity.

1.Capture your enemy’s territory but don’t destroy it in the process.

2.Avoid your enemies’ strengths and attack their weaknesses.

3.Conduct in-depth research into your competitors.

4.Speed compensates for a lack of resources.

5.Engage your enemy in two places at once.

6.Leaders should possess five key qualities, and avoid several others.

According to Sun Tzu, the first crucial quality for leaders is wisdom. Wisdom enables leaders to recognize when circumstances are shifting and to make pragmatic, advantageous decisions. Second, leaders need to be bold and have the courage to seize opportunities when they arise.

The third crucial quality for good leaders is being humane – sympathizing with their troops and appreciating their sacrifices. Fourth, leaders must be sincere, so that their soldiers can be sure of rewards for their efforts. And fifth, good leaders must be strict so that their forces remain disciplined and fear the consequences of bad behavior.
(Blinkist summary)
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raptorthan
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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At least he didn't name this "The Art of War for Business"...

It's a very thoughtful book though. I have read a few versions of the Art of War, and have been doing business in Asia for 10 years now, but this helped me make some connections between Sun Tzu's battle field and the market that I didn't make earlier.

The goal is to win without fighting.
We must attack where the enemy is not.

Seriously, if your responsible for business strategy, you should read this. In spite of the cheesy title and cover, the author is very sharp. Every bit as valid in 2014 as when it was written almost 20 years ago.

Now if we can just change Sun-Tzu to Sunzi... Mangling Chinese names is so annoying... 孙子孙子孙子 not "Sun-SUE"...
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DrCulture
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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I really enjoyed this book. It provided a very different approach to business strategy than most other books I have read on the topic. I would definitely recommend this book.
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Unregistered00
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Michael Fleegler's review made me laugh aloud but I will give it a read anyway. Funny, Michael!



Quick read. Worth picking up if you are in Managment or Busines Development. 101 level but is good for a refresher which we all need but are afraid to admit.
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deoxyribose64
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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me gustó mucho la forma en la que el autor define ejemplos sencillos, prácticos y aplicables en cualquier modelo de negocio. Excelente recomendaciones prácticas.
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