Surface Ripples

Failing to Plan?

Two countries attacked a third at the end of February 2026. The business lessons we can learn are: 

1. Define the goal: the purpose of doing anything is to accomplish something.  In this case, there was a degree of uncertainty in what the goal was.  It was separately described as: destroying that country ’s missile capability, destroying their nuclear enrichment capability (which had, apparently, being “obliterated” in 2025) and to destroy its navy.
2. Without a clear goal, we can’t plan how to get there.  This is somewhat like asking a builder to build us a house but not providing any plans specifying how many floors it should have, construction materials, number of rooms, fixtures and fittings and so on.
3. The what/why/when/how/where/who?   Some may recognise these as Rudyard Kipling’s “Six Honest Serving Men” but they help to define all parts of a strategy.  Without them, we tend to flail around.
4.  Contingency planning: in this case, allies in the region and further afield were hit by drones targeting both military and civilian installations.
5. How will we know when we’ve achieved success? A gain, without a clearly defined goal and measurable steps to achieve it, we don’t know if we’ve succeeded or not.

For someone who claimed to be one of the world’s most successful businessmen and dealmakers, it’s surprising that the head of state in question didn’t follow these steps, resulting in leadership and economic chaos.

As business leaders, our job is to set direction with clear goals to achieve our desired objective.  Yes, that objective can change depending on circumstances, but with proper contingency planning, we can adjust to those changes and still achieve what we set out to do.

Our second job is to empower our people with the correct knowledge, tools, financial resources and any other that they may need to achieve that goal.

The third is to monitor progress, intervening where required to move things along. 

Finally, when we “get there” we need to lead the celebrations!

I deliver change in markets ranging from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management.  I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. 

Labels: Leadership, Strategy, Teamwork

posted by William Martin @ 10:00