Patterns of conflict
Regular readers will know that I have an interest in military history. (See How to improve morale and confidence and Interview with Stephen Bungay.) I’m reading an excellent biography of John Boyd (Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War
In the meantime, I’ve found a version of his masterwork, the Patterns of conflict briefing.
Sun Tzu’s Art of War is sometimes read as a business manual. There are some who think that John Boyd was the Sun Tzu of our age. His Patterns of conflict presentation was a six-hour briefing that is highly influential in American military circles.
I can’t find a version with narration but here’s the slidedeck - all 198 slides. It won’t take six hours to read it but it’s worth spending 20-30 minutes going through it.
Jeff wrote:
Matthew, while Boyd’s ideas were crucial (I had to learn them in the USMC in the 80’s), the US Marine Corps has crafted a much more interesting document entitled Warfighting. It is a genuine philosophy of conflict and is based on Boyd’s work.
You might also examine the USMC’s manuals on Tactics and Campaigning. Tactics has an especially valuable chapter on how to get things done faster.
Having said that, I don’t think business is like war. Business is like diplomacy. It is cooperative and competitive — coopetition. I recommend two books, Arts of Power and Coopetition.
Now, if I haven’t mangled any of those links, enjoy!
Posted on 19-Jun-08 at 6:25 pm | Permalink
Bad Language / Boyd - Book Review wrote:
[...] my earlier post about Boyd’s Patterns of Conflict [...]
Posted on 19-Aug-08 at 7:52 am | Permalink