The Art of War and Human Resource
The Art of War
Erica McNairy
Lawrence Wagoner
TELS 3345
November 27, 2011
The Art of War and Human Resource
The field of Human Resource coincides with Sun Tzu’s The Art of War in many approaches. “The art of war is of vital importance to the State. It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry, which can on no account be neglected” (Tzu). This book was based on military strategies but in reality these strategies can be used in all job fields such as the Human Resources. Sun Tzu broke down each chapter with different strategies for war. From the “Laying of Plans” to the “Use of Spies” an instrumental lesson could be formed with the challenges that Human resource Management is faced with. Success is the goal and Sun Tzu’s Art of War helps one obtain it.
“The general who loses a battle makes but few calculations beforehand. Thus do many calculations lead to victory, and few calculations to defeat” (Tzu). In other words planning is a key to success in the business aspect and victories in the military aspect. This was the first topic discussed in the Art of War. With any project or job, there should be proper planning and preparation before executing anything. Text from Managing Human Resources, state “H R managers must be concerned with meshing HRP and strategic planning for the organization as a whole”(Bohlander 51). HRP stands for human resource planning and it’s the process of anticipating and providing for the movement of people info within and out of an organization. The idea of strategic planning is making decisions for about the organizations long-term goals and strategies. Both human resource planning and strategic planning coincides with Tzu’s “Laying Plans” chapter. The five factors that determine the outcome of military engagements (The Moral Law, Heaven, Earth, the Commander, and Method and Discipline) can be both compared and argued to the steps in strategic planning for human
Erica McNairy
Lawrence Wagoner
TELS 3345
November 27, 2011
The Art of War and Human Resource
The field of Human Resource coincides with Sun Tzu’s The Art of War in many approaches. “The art of war is of vital importance to the State. It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry, which can on no account be neglected” (Tzu). This book was based on military strategies but in reality these strategies can be used in all job fields such as the Human Resources. Sun Tzu broke down each chapter with different strategies for war. From the “Laying of Plans” to the “Use of Spies” an instrumental lesson could be formed with the challenges that Human resource Management is faced with. Success is the goal and Sun Tzu’s Art of War helps one obtain it.
“The general who loses a battle makes but few calculations beforehand. Thus do many calculations lead to victory, and few calculations to defeat” (Tzu). In other words planning is a key to success in the business aspect and victories in the military aspect. This was the first topic discussed in the Art of War. With any project or job, there should be proper planning and preparation before executing anything. Text from Managing Human Resources, state “H R managers must be concerned with meshing HRP and strategic planning for the organization as a whole”(Bohlander 51). HRP stands for human resource planning and it’s the process of anticipating and providing for the movement of people info within and out of an organization. The idea of strategic planning is making decisions for about the organizations long-term goals and strategies. Both human resource planning and strategic planning coincides with Tzu’s “Laying Plans” chapter. The five factors that determine the outcome of military engagements (The Moral Law, Heaven, Earth, the Commander, and Method and Discipline) can be both compared and argued to the steps in strategic planning for human
Cited: Bohlander, George W., and Scott Snell. Managing Human Resources. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning, 2010. Print. Sun, Tzu. Art of War. [S.l.]: Pax Librorum H, 2009. Print.