Competitive Success

Singh's manual offers a blueprint for taking corporate strategizing to the next level. Drawing on his 25 years as a business consultant, Singh lays out his view of incorporating "war gaming" into the world of corporate decision-making, contrasting this approach with the normal ways that companies tend to evolve. As opposed to those regular, plodding ways, war gaming is a "360-degree external assessment" of a corporation's needs. Instead of the typical inward-directed analyses many businesses tend to use, "War gaming gives you an understanding of your external environment: your customers and their value drivers; your competition and, even better, all the other stakeholders in your marketplace (regulatory government agencies, supply chains) which are usually ignored in traditional planning." War gaming is about far more than simply going along with the crowd or conducting business as usual, Singh asserts; it's about doing, not just thinking about acting, and therefore becomes an effective tool for dealing with situations when normal strategizing doesn't work. Singh provides a detailed overview for developing the strategic element of war gaming (What will an industry look like in the short and long term?), the operational facet (How do corporate leaders define the game they're playing?), and the tactical component (What product capabilities and plans are in place?). While the author illustrates these concepts with plenty of numbered points and graphics, the book's main strength is his vividly straightforward prose, tempered by his own experiences and full of examples involving famous companies such as Boeing and Facebook. He's very clear on the advantages of war gaming, and he delivers insights into tactics that will be strong enough to handle the changes normal strategies can't predict. The best approach, Singh tells readers, is to respect the competition: "Winning isn't about having the most resources; it's about resourcefulness." He advocates forming a "Briefing Book" for these kinds of war games, and his own manual will serve quite well in that role for corporate leaders. A clear, valuable, and vigorous guide to making battle-worthy business plans.

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March 25, 2024
Analogies linking war and business are common: Burger King is forever pitted against McDonald’s, just as FedEx is against UPS. In Competitive Success, Singh offers a blueprint to build “winning strategies with corporate war games,” competitions in which teams playing rival companies hatch strategies in response to unpredictable scenarios. In these hypothetical skirmishes, messages must be crafted and reinforced, intelligence analyzed, markets protected, talent recruited, goals defined and met, all as leaders rally the “troops”—sales teams, innovators, and more.
Here, he makes the case that business leaders can learn much from the corporate war game, which he argues should be treated as a dynamic, ongoing exercise with total victory being the only goal. After all, deep inside the boardroom, which Singh compares to a military headquarters,visions are disclosed, strengths and weaknesses exposed, and strategies are developed. This brisk read benefits from Singh’s crisp, sometimes staccato style, as he makes his points with concise clarity, dispensing guidance, case studies, and lessons about planning and team-building with the air of a military instructor, demonstrating throughout how war-game wisdom has been applied to real-world business challenges. Singh persuasively argues that disaster response should be an active part of any war plan rather than treated as a dynamic component of a strategic, long-term program.
Another urgent lesson: there is no substitute for long-range planning, and there are almost no possible situations that should be considered too unlikely to occur. When discussing how to prepare for the unexpected, such as considering how the COVID-19 pandemic suddenly devastated the international travel business, Singh notes that most companies were unprepared and forced to scramble to survive. Conversely, he notes how Royal Dutch Shell had a plan for a petroleum-supply disruption, as occurred twice during the 1970s, and the company was able to pivot, suffering comparatively minimal damage. A QR code in the appendix printable digital templates, a playbook example, and war game scenarios can be downloaded—a stellar bonus.
Takeaway: Insightful guide to “war game” sessions to hone business strategy.
Comparable Titles: Richard P. Rumelt’s The Crux, Rita McGrath’s Seeing Around Corners.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A