Le manager joueur de go [The Go-Playing Manager]
Learning from the game of go to open up some interesting perspectives on strategic thinking.
Author(s): Jean-Christian Fauvet, Marc Smia
Publisher: Editions d'Organisation
Date of publication: 2006
Manageris opinion
Westerners are familiar with chess as the emblem of strategic games. However, they are less familiar with the game of go. This is unfortunate, according to the authors of this book, because the game of go is more applicable to business issues and managers could learn a great deal from studying it more closely.
After a rapid review of the rules of the game, the authors play a fictitious game and help us discover what can be learned from it. These teachings include the benefits of using the edges of the go-ban (game board) rather than the center, which symbolizes the need for managers to derive their power from the field rather than top management (chapter 1), the advantages of thinking in terms of controlling territory and space, the need to find a balance between expanding territory and consolidating areas already under your control (chapter 6), the parallel between the stones of the game and the acts of managers, whose accumulated acts can help expand their influence day by day (chapter 3), the astuteness of creating semi-autonomous territories connected by an overall vision, much like the teams of a company (chapter 11), etc. Last but not least, this original and enticing book certainly makes you to want to play go!