Strategic Management: Lessons from Genghis KhanA report by Raymund SanchezAs a course requirement for the subject of ‘Strategic Management’

The agenda of this report is to showcase sound & successful strategic management decisions anchored on the famous conqueror “Genghis Khan”. The purpose of which is to show that although his accomplishments were several centuries ago, they could still be a source of logical management top level decision making even today.

Also, although commerce & military conquest are of differing fields, this reports hope to show that those people engaged in business can still learn lessons from Genghis Khan since both endeavors uses scare resources to achieve goals.

I. Strategic Management Overview

Before we can proceed to the analysis of what lessons can be learned from Genghis Khan, strategic management must first be clearly defined. The textbook definition of “Management” is the planning, organizing, directing, & controlling resources in order to achieve its goals. The sub branches of management therefore are merely more concise version of this definition pertaining to its field. An example would be “Marketing Management” which is the planning, organizing, directing, & controlling of a company’s marketing resources to achieve its marketing goals. The same is true for human resources management, operations management, financial management, etc.

Strategic management therefore is the conduct of drafting, implementing and evaluating cross-functional decisions that will enable an organization to achieve its long-term objectives. The difference of this field as compared to the others is that it is not functional, but on the level of management. It is a type of management used by top level executives of a company to determine the over all direction of the enterprise.

A more detailed definition would be that it is the process of specifying the organization's mission, vision and objectives, developing policies and plans, often in terms of projects and programs, which are designed to achieve these objectives, and then allocating resources to implement the policies and plans, projects and programs.

Now that we know what strategic management is, when can now analyze & digress into the strategic management policies of Genghis Khan.

II. History

a) Birth & Ascent to power

Before we delve into the strategic management lessons of Genghis Khan, it would be most advisable to briefly familiarize ourselves with the historical background of the main protagonist. The purpose of which is to better put into proper context the rationale for which Genghis Khan created his said policies. We might enter the trap of misjudging him based on our set of moral standards if we are not familiar with the world, culture & time he lived in.

Genghis was the founder, of the Mongol Empire, the largest contiguous empire in history. He came to power by uniting many of the nomadic tribes of northeast Asia. After founding the Mongol Empire and being proclaimed "Genghis Khan", he started the Mongol invasions and raids of the Kara-Khitan Khanate, Caucasus,

Khwarezmid Empire, Western Xia and Jin dynasties. During his life, the Mongol Empire eventually occupied a substantial portion of Central Asia.

Before Genghis Khan died, he assigned Ogedei Khan as his successor and split his empire into khanates among his sons and grandsons. He died in 1227 after defeating the Tanguts. He was buried in an unmarked grave somewhere in Mongolia at a location unknown. His descendants went on to stretch the Mongol Empire across most of Eurasia by conquering and/or creating vassal states out of all of modern-day China, Korea, the Caucasus, Central Asian countries, and substantial portions of modern Eastern Europe and the Middle East.

Temüjin was related on his father's side to Khabul Khan, Ambaghai and Qutula Khan who had headed the Mongol confederation. When the Jin Dynasty switched support from the Mongols to the Tatars in 1161, they destroyed Qabul Khan. Genghis' father, Yesugei (leader of the Borjigin and nephew to Ambaghai and Qutula Khan), emerged as the head of the ruling clan of the Mongols, but this position was contested by the rival Tayichi’ud clan, who descended directly from Ambaghai. When the Tatars grew too powerful after 1161, the Jin switched their support from the Tatars to the Keraits.

The Central Asian plateau (north of China) around the time of Temüjin (the early 1200s) was divided into several tribes or confederations, among them Naimans, Merkits, Uyghurs, Tatars, Mongols, and Keraits, that were all prominent in their own right and often unfriendly toward each other as evidenced by random raids, revenges, and plundering.

Temüjin began his slow ascent to power by offering himself as an ally (or, according to others sources, a vassal) to his father's anda (sworn brother or blood brother) Toghrul, who was Khan of the Kerait, and is better known by the Chinese title Ong Khan (or "Wang Khan"), which the Jin Empire granted him in 1197. This relationship was first reinforced when Börte was captured by the Merkits; it was Toghrul to whom Temüjin turned for support. In response, Toghrul offered his vassal 20,000 of his Kerait warriors and suggested that he also involve his childhood friend Jamuka, who had himself become Khan (ruler) of his own tribe, the Jadaran. Although the campaign was successful and led to the recapture of Börte and utter defeat of the Merkits, it also paved the way for the split between the childhood friends, Temüjin and Jamuka. Temüjin had become blood brother (anda) with Jamuka earlier, and they had vowed to remain eternally faithful.

b) Mongol Military

Genghis Khan put absolute trust in his generals, such as Muqali, Jebe and Subutai, and regarded them as close advisors, often extending them the same privileges and trust normally reserved for close family members. He allowed them to make decisions on their own when they embarked on campaigns far from the Mongol Empire capital Karakorum. Genghis Khan expected unwavering loyalty from his generals, and granted them a great deal of autonomy in making command decisions. Muqali, a trusted general, was given command of the Mongol forces against the Jin Dynasty while Genghis Khan was fighting in Central Asia, and Subutai and Jebe were allowed to pursue the Great Raid into the Caucausus and Kievan Rus, an idea they had presented to the Khagan on their own initiative. The Mongol military was also successful in siege warfare, cutting off resources for cities and towns by diverting certain rivers, taking enemy prisoners and driving them in front of the army, and adopting new ideas, techniques and tools from the people they conquered, particularly in employing Muslim and Chinese siege engines and engineers to aid the Mongol cavalry in capturing cities. Another standard tactic of the Mongol military was the commonly practiced feigned retreat to break enemy formations and to lure small enemy groups away from the larger group and defended position for ambush and counterattack.

Another important aspect of the military organization of Genghis Khan was the communications and supply route or Yam, adapted from previous Chinese models. Genghis Khan dedicated special attention to this in

order to speed up the gathering of military intelligence and official communications. To this end, Yam way stations were established all over the empire.1

III. Management Lessons

a) Leadership: Mongol officers were chosen based on merit, rather than class, in contrast to most armies of the Middle Ages. Even Genghis Khan's successor was voted on by his three sons; the two oldest avoided civil war by selecting their baby brother, Ogadai, whom they served loyally.

The Mongols' egalitarian management and succession style, and openness to new tools and ideas, led to long-term stability for their empire, which lasted for hundreds of years. In most areas of Asia, they were never conquered but were gradually assimilated into the local populations

By doing this, Genghis Khan was no longer burdened with incompetent lieutenants privileged because of their blood line, he got the best of the best by his method of modern day promotion.

b) Lean organization: The Mongol "horde" was highly organized.

A Mongol general coordinated the movements of tens of thousands of men, across mountain ranges and in unknown territory, as precisely as movements on a chessboard. In battle, through a signaling system of colored banners, he could advance thousands of men at a time, send them back, turn them, and direct their charges -- and when he gave orders, his men did instantly what they were told

The Mongols' military structure, had many of the attributes 21st-century companies strive for: disciplined and efficient yet flexible; accurate communicating of decision in real time; and efficient use of resources in a variety of innovative ways

c) Planning: The Mongol leaders never rush into war. They plan first & assess the opponent before making the first move. Although 200,000 men and horses would go stampeding across a border, it was months after it had first been proposed

The Mongols carefully scouted out and spied on their enemies in advance of any invasion. Prior to the invasion of Europe, Batu and Subutai sent spies for almost ten years into the heart of Europe, making maps of the old Roman roads, establishing trade routes, and determining the level of ability of each principality to resist invasion.

They made well-educated guesses as to the willingness of each principality to aid the others, and their ability to resist alone or together.

d) Lean technology: The transportation and weapons of the Mongols also fostered flexibility and responsiveness to changing circumstances

1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genghis_khan

The Mongol bow was a recurved composite bow, a lamination of wood, horn and sinew that could cast an arrow more than 300 yards. The Mongols shot their arrows with great accuracy while riding at a fast pace and could even shoot accurately backward at a pursuer

The Mongol pony was considerably smaller than the war charger of the Western armies. The Asiatic animal, however, had superb endurance and survived by grazing in the wild. Each Mongol soldier had 2 to 4 ponies so that he could spell them on a march and save them from exhaustion. The practice allowed Mongol armies to travel 50 to 60 miles in a day, several times the distance that a Western army of the period could travel.

This could be translated into its modern day business equivalent of “competitive advantage”. Genghis Khan had the following advantages over other armies. The difference is that he was able to fully exploit the said advantages. Other companies have either not maximized their competitive advantage enough or even have not found their own niche market.

e) Innovation: The Mongols were the first to introduce many creative & cruel weaponry in war

First to use bio warfare. They hurled diseased bodies of enemies through the wall of a besieged enemy during sieges. First to weaponize gun powder. Artifacts of hollow cannon ball like projectile were unearthed by Japanese archeologists. The design suggests that they were filled with gunpowder. First to effectively use “human shields” in war. Innovated communication in the battlefield through the use of signal arrows & flags.

Genghis Khan was not afraid to try new things, knowing that the slightest edge can mean the balance between winning & losing. The strategic management equivalent of this is a company should invest in research & development. Since technology is easily made obsolete, the search for newer & better products should be a long term priority. Change is constant.

f) Technology transfer: they were not intimidated or fearful of societies that had these things. On the contrary, they valued them and would quickly assimilate the expertise and experts of the societies they conquered, particularly China.

Mongols did not have a written language, and they had little specialized technology, aside from the composite bow. Mongols saw the Chinese armies using new weapons effectively, he captured their men and put them to work for him. The "Not-Invented-Here" syndrome was not a concern for the Mongols

g) Aggressive process: a combination of organizational self-discipline, flexibility and aggressiveness allowed the Mongols to defeat larger armies of that era that were rigidly organized, and whose discipline was superficial.

The Mongols cultivated these efficient, collaborative qualities in their horsemen from an early age by their traditional hunt on the Mongolian steppe, where they would encircle large numbers of animals and gradually herd them together for butchering, rather than chasing them down individually.

This translated into its business equivalent mean the use of an effective corporate culture of excellence, discipline, aggressiveness, & flexibility. Genghis Khan was able to instill this to his men since they trained in this lifestyle from childbirth. In the modern day business enterprise, the corporate culture should emanate from top management & trickled down to the lowest employee.2

h) Motivation: in order to ensure his army’s loyalty, Genghis Khan shared his plunder.

The profits in the 13th Century were technically, the spoils of victory and quite frequently included living people who were then subjected to a life of misery. But for Genghis's armies, the booty pillaged from the vanquished was a big part of their annual income and their leader was careful to make sure his soldiers got their fair share.

Genghis Khan knew that, certainly in the early days, that what held all this together was the pay system. Therefore his men, especially his officers, were well paid.

Genghis Khans great achievement here is the realization that motivation is simple not just negative reinforcement but a combination of positive & negative. He was ahead of his time in realizing that he was not the center of the world & that people will obey him just because of that. People need to be led according to their needs.

i) Abhorrence of office politics: Genghis Khan appreciated loyalty & allegiance

Genghis Khan’s rule was not without attempts to overthrow him, thus he punished coup plotters severely & made them an example. Genghis Khan punished those who were disloyal, even if they were disloyal to his enemies.

j) Cruel business efficiency: The Mongols would do all that was necessary to completely conquer the town or cities

Some tactics involved diverting rivers from the city/town, closing supplies to the city and waiting for its inhabitants to surrender, gathering civilians from the nearby areas to fill the front line for the city/town attack before scaling the wall, and pillaging the surrounding area and killing some of the people, then letting some survivors flee to the main city to report their losses to the main populace to weaken resistance, simultaneously draining the resources of the city with the sudden influx of refugees

They often offered an opportunity for the enemy to surrender and pay tribute, instead of having their city ransacked and destroyed. When cities accepted the offer, they were spared, but were of course required to support the conquering Mongol army with manpower, supplies, and other services.

k) Speed of execution: The Mongol army was the fastest & most mobile army of its day

2 http://www.opentechnologies.com/writings/CC011705.htm

The Mongol army was 100% cavalry. Unlike their heavily armored opponents which would have to march long distances on foot, the Mongol horde did not require frequent stops to rest, or need bodies of water to sustain it.

The Mongol horseman used only mares as their mounts so that they can drink from its milk & minimize their pit stops. They also nick the necks of their mounts when hungry & drink its blood while riding, thus eating & riding non stop.