Sun Tzu's Art of War: Modern Applications Across Fields

Introduction: The Enduring Appeal of The Art of War

There are numerous ways to benefit from Sun Tzu's brilliant narrative, and equally numerous diverse and worthy interpretations and applications. This paper will, through the literature, critically analyze the relevance and the references appropriate to The Art of War.

"There is a reason Sun Tzu's The Art of War is popular among management and law students, but not among medical interns and engineers. The former are preparing for professional roles within institutions that have important adversarial features [but] the latter are not…" (Heath, 2007, p. 359)

Jason B. MacDonald and Kent E. Neupert, writing in the Journal of Strategic Marketing, use their scholarly article to point out that the poignant phrases and messages in The Art of War fit right into the correct strategies for marketing professionals. The writers note that the very first Western translation of The Art of War was completed in 1772 in France, and the first English translation appeared in 1905. That is a long time for this powerful text — written around 400 B.C. and containing advice and strategies that remain remarkably applicable today — to have languished unseen by anyone outside China. Around 716 A.D., the Japanese translated The Art of War into their language, "over a thousand years before it appeared in the English and French-speaking West" (MacDonald et al., 2005, p. 293).

Marketing Strategy and the Terrain Framework

MacDonald asserts early in his article how Sun Tzu's concepts of ground and terrain can serve as "parsimonious typologies of competitive market situations" that can certainly be used by anyone working in a marketing role. Just as Tzu emphasizes repeatedly throughout his work, marketers should avoid direct "battle with a competitor" if they can win another way. But above all, a marketing professional, like the general going to war, should "Know the enemy, know yourself," and "your victory will never be endangered" (Tzu, quoted in MacDonald, p. 294).

One theme Tzu addresses quite often is the importance of knowing the "terrain" — the lay of the land, the geography where the battle or strategy will take place. MacDonald references terrain on page 295 and gives credit to Tzu for the adroitness of his narrative on this subject. "Accessible" is one aspect Tzu references, and MacDonald builds on it by pointing out that markets that are equally open to you and to the competitor are "accessible markets," and because of that, no one producer of goods or services has "a large enough hold on the market" to keep another out (p. 295).

When a company — Priceline, for example — rushes in to establish a market where there are few competitors, it has carved out a terrain and defined it. However, Tzu's book suggests that in these kinds of situations, "the invading army needs to focus on securing the most advantageous ground (or market segment in this context)" (MacDonald, 2005, p. 295). MacDonald does not believe Priceline heeded that advice. Priceline spent "much of their early capital on broadening their product offering to other markets" such as garage sales and even "gas sales," he points out.

Rather than securing its terrain, Priceline allowed other companies — specifically Travelocity and Expedia — to "come in and take the most profitable sector of the market, online air tickets to business customers," the author recounts (p. 295). In MacDonald's view, Priceline lost its edge by spreading its "army" too thin and allowing the competition to seize ground it had initially controlled.

When the terrain a company enters is "equally advantageous for the enemy or me to occupy," MacDonald considers that ground "key ground" (p. 299). Key ground is essential to defend, and going by Tzu's theory, such terrain should be fought over "to the death to defend it," MacDonald asserts (p. 299). His example in this context is Goodyear Tire Company: the U.S. market is "key ground" for Goodyear in the same way that the European market is "key ground" for Michelin. Hence, "in both cases, it makes little sense for one to attack the other's key market" because the incumbent company will likely have "greater resolve to protect it" (p. 300).

Though MacDonald did not cite Tzu's passage opening Chapter Six, it is highly germane to the marketing strategies he discusses. "Whoever is first in the field and awaits the coming of the enemy, will be fresh for the fight," Tzu wrote. That would be like Michelin in Europe — there first, fresh for any challenge from Goodyear. Tzu continues: "Whoever is second in the field and has to hasten to the battle, will arrive exhausted" — a description that fits Goodyear as a latecomer into the European tire market.

Football Coaching and the Principles of Deception

Kenny Ratledge, writing in the journal Coach & Athletic Director, argues that a smart football coach will use Tzu's theories to his best advantage — and asserts that some great coaches, including Woody Hayes and Bobby Knight, have in fact drawn on military strategy. Ratledge quotes Tzu — "If the enemy is in superior strength, evade him" — to make the point that if a football team knows its opponent is superior offensively, "It would be prudent to avoid taking him on man-to-man" (Ratledge, 2003, pp. 24–25). Ratledge takes this further, suggesting that if an opponent's defense is superior to your offense, it would be wise to "run an option-oriented attack" that allows your team to run away from "certain defenders" and render them "ineffective" (p. 25).

Any football coach knows that disguising formations and strategies is a practical way to keep the enemy off balance. Ratledge highlights the Tzu passage on deception: "When near your enemy, make him believe you are far away; when far away, make him believe you are near." This passage is another example of how Tzu can say a great deal with just a few words — less is more — and breaking complex ideas into simple concepts is a winning strategy when a coach is building a case for victory with his players.

Conclusion: Enduring Wisdom with Defined Limits

The many poignant and succinct maxims that Sun Tzu has presented — whether the English translations are precise or not — have made an impression on many important writers, ordinary readers, scholars, military leaders, and political pundits alike. Among the most striking passages is one that sounds remarkably like a Shakespearean play, albeit written two thousand years before the playwright's work. Early in Chapter Six, Tzu writes, "O divine art of subtlety and secrecy! Through you we learn to be invisible, through you inaudible; and hence hold the enemy's fate in our hands" (Tzu, 1992, p. 232).

As this paper has shown, by using the words "invisible" and "secrecy," Tzu may appear to be encouraging a military leader to conduct exhaustive intelligence gathering to discern what the enemy is attempting — and that may, in fact, contain some truth. But fundamentally, he was pointing out again and again that war is a mind game, a battlefield of psychology and shrewd strategic moves. Even more poignant — at the end of Chapter Nine — Tzu says, "He who exercises no forethought, but makes light of his opponents, risks being captured by them." This can hold true for marketing professionals, football coaches, military leaders, and even chess players. If the most germane of these maxims are applied thoughtfully and intelligently, then The Art of War will continue to carry important implications across many fields for years to come. However, viewing it as a panacea for all that needs correcting in business, sports, or war would be a mistake.

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