Clausewitz, Karl von (1780-1831): In honing his own strategic thinking, Welch drew on the strategies of the Prussian general and military writer. Clausewitz’s writings, including his classic On War, were edited and published by his widow after the general’s death. His work and writings, such as his “no system of strategy,” formed the basis for all serious study of war. Welch quoted the general, whose theories included an explanation of why a military leader could not devise a complete battle plan and then stick blindly to it: “Man could not reduce strategy to a formula. Detailed planning necessarily failed, due to the inevitable frictions encountered.” And: “Strategy was not a lengthy action plan. It was the evolution of a central idea through continually changing circumstances.” Welch’s own strategic thinking matched the general’s. He constantly reinvented GE over the years as circumstances and the competitive environment shifted.

卡尔·冯·克劳塞维茨（1780－1831年）

为了砥砺自己的战略性思维，韦尔奇便从这位普鲁士将军兼军事作家的战略中采撷英华。克劳塞维茨的作品是他的遗孀在他身后整理出版的，其中包括他的经典之作《战争论》（On War）。他的文章著述（比如他的“战略无系统”理论，no system of strategy）构成了一切严肃的战争研究的基础。他的理论中解释了为什么军事将领不可能设计一套完整的作战计划、然后盲目地秉照执行。韦尔奇引述这位将军的话说：“人不能使战略沦为公式。由于免不了会遭遇摩擦，所以详细的计划必定失败。”他还援引说：“战略并非冗长的行动计划。它是中心思想在不断变化的环境中的演进。”韦尔奇自己的战略思想与克劳塞维茨将军完全吻合。这些年来，他始终随着形势以及竞争环境的变化而不断地重塑通用电气公司。

 

HOW WELCH APPLIED CLAUSEWITZ TO GE

While Welch did maintain a long-term view at GE (e.g., creating strong businesses that would survive in the long run), his approach to his strategies and initiatives followed Clausewitz’s doctrine. There was an evolution to Welch’s strategic thinking, and each major initiative built on the one that preceded it. By waging “war” on bureaucracy and the old ways one movement at a time, Welch established a solid foundation on which he eventually built GE’s famed learning organization. He would wage one “battle” and then wait to see how the “inevitable frictions” played out. In tracing the evolution of GE during his tenure, Welch has drawn a stair-step-like chart that depicts the stages of GE’s culture change: Work-Out laid the foundation for Best Practices, which created a platform for Process Improvement, etc.

韦尔奇将克劳塞维茨的理论应用到通用电气公司

虽说韦尔奇在通用电气公司保持了长远的眼光（例如建设能够长期存续的强大企业），但他推行自己策略和倡导行动的方式却遵循了克劳塞维茨的理论。韦尔奇的战略思想都经历了演进的过程，而且每一项重大的倡导行动都建立在前一项活动的基础上。他步步为营地向官僚主义和陈腐的方式发动战争，从而为他最终将通用电气公司建设为著名的学习型组织而奠定了坚实基础。他会发起一场“战役”，然后静待观察“免不了的摩擦”如何发生作用。当他回顾通用电气公司在自己任内的发展过程时，韦尔奇曾经画了一幅阶梯状的图来描述通用电气公司文化变革的各个阶段：“群策群力”为“最佳做法”倡导行动打下了基础，后者又为“流程改进”行动创造了平台，以此类推。

 

 

Leadership lessons from Clausewitz

向克劳塞维茨汲取的领导经验

 

1. Strategy cannot be reduced to a single formula: Clausewitz knew that no single formula would help to win a war. Circumstances would shift, requiring a general to alter his strategy after the battle ensued. The same holds true for business, as shifting conditions require business leaders to alter their strategies in the face of changing conditions (economic, competitive, technological, etc.).

1、战略不能沦为单一的公式：克劳塞维茨清楚，任何单一的公式都无助于打赢战争。形势会产生变化，这就要求将领在随后的战役中改变战略。对经营管理而言，道理也是一样，因为变换的条件要求企业领导人针对不断变化的状况（经济、竞争、技术等）来改变他们的策略。

 

2. Do not write a long-term plan and blindly follow it:

Clausewitz knew it was foolish to blindly follow a plan that was written before a battle took place. “Strategy was not a lengthy action plan.”Welch knew he would have to be an adaptive

leader, tailoring the strategy to the latest conditions.

2、不要拟制一份长期计划、然后盲目遵守：克劳塞维茨清楚，盲目遵守在战斗发生之前拟制的计划是一种愚行。“战略并非冗长的行动计划。”韦尔奇知道自己必须要成为随机应变的领导人，要根据最新的状况来拟定恰当的策略。

 

3. Do not think that simply applying all Welch strategies will work in your organization: This is a key Clausewitz lesson. While few would dispute Welch’s contributions, one cannot blindly imitate his every move. Welch launched his companywide movements one initiative at a time. His success was built on “the evolution of a central idea through continually changing circumstances.” Your “business laboratory” is not identical to GE’s, and the “inevitable frictions” in your organization will differ according to the changing circumstances. It took Welch many years to transform GE’s culture and ready the company for his companywide initiatives.

3、别以为能在自己的组织中简单照搬一切韦尔奇策略：这是从克劳塞维茨那儿学到的关键一课。尽管甚少人会否认韦尔奇的贡献，但我们不能盲目地对他亦步亦趋。韦尔奇每一次只推行一套倡导行动，他是步步为营地推行全公司运动的。他的成功建立在“中心思想在不断变化的环境中的演进”基础上。其他人的“经营实验室”与通用电气公司并不一样，各个组织中“免不了的摩擦”也会随着变化的形势而不同。韦尔奇花了许多年的时间来改变通用电气公司的文化，并为他遍及全公司的倡导行动做好准备。