Managers: How Not to Lose the War Even as You Win the Battles

Most Fortune 100 companies of 50 years ago no longer exist because they were too focused on winning their battles and not enough on winning their wars. Managers should shift their perspective to winning the war by walking in their customer's shoes, always moving toward the middle, and touching the customer's dream. Winning the war is the key to success.

Building a powerful customer value proposition is essential to winning the war. This can involve creating an extended product and building blocks of real value and trust. The supplier should also focus on helping their customers achieve their dream by offering unique capabilities that the customer cannot do alone.

Admiral Nimitz offers an important strategic lesson. He was paged by President Franklin Roosevelt and told he would be Commander of the Pacific Fleet and arrived at Pearl Harbor on Christmas Eve 1941. He shocked everyone with his response to the destruction: "The Japanese made three of the biggest mistakes an attack force could ever make, or God was taking care of America." Managers should strive to win the war and not settle with anything less.