For every objective, there should be unity of effort
under one responsible commander.
Unity of effort requires that all elements of a force work harmoniously
toward a common goal, and it implies the development
of coordination of the full combat powers of the available.
forces. Cooperation further contributes to unity of effort,
But only when a single individual is responsible for the activities of a
group can the group operate at its peak efficiency in its quest to
achieve an assigned goal.
Coalition warfare creates a challenge
for the principle of unity of command because of the unwillingness
of groups to place their resources under the control of a
commander from one of the other groups in the coalition.
The Principle of Unity of Command in Business
In every organization, whether collegial, participatory, democratic,
hierarchical, or any other kind of management system,
there has to be a single person in charge of achieving each
The Principle of Unity of Command—One Person in Charge
goal and at each point of responsibility. There has to be a
place where, as President Harry Truman said, “The buck stops
here.”
When Lee Iacocca took over Chrysler Corporation in 1979,
the company was on the verge of bankruptcy. The first thing
he found upon arriving was that there were thirty-six vice presidents
of Chrysler Corporation worldwide, each of whom had
his own fiefdom. Each of them was in competition with the
other vice presidents.
There was no clear leadership. If someone
did not agree with a senior management decision, they
simply delayed and dragged their feet on the decision and
eventually assured that nothing got done.
Iacocca immediately took command. He reorganized the
corporation, fired thirty-five of the thirty-six vice presidents,
went to Congress to get a loan guarantee, renegotiated
Chrysler’s loans with more than 400 banks, renegotiated contracts
with 350,000 Chrysler workers, and renegotiated prices
with 4,000 suppliers. Within four years, he had turned the
company around, paid back the loans in full, and generated
350 million dollars in profits. Lee Iacocca will always be
remembered for this feat as one of the great business leaders
of the twentieth century.
When IBM ran into serious trouble in 1991 and 1992, Lou
Gerstner was brought from RJR Nabisco as the new president.
He immediately took command.
He reorganized the company
and its divisions to make them more competitive. He consolidated
some divisions with others and discontinued product
and service areas that were no longer profitable. Within two
years, he had turned IBM around, from losses to profits, and
put the company back on the map. Under his leadership, the
IBM stock price increased more than 700 percent!
Jack Welch, arguably the finest chief executive of the twentieth
century, led General Electric to forty-eight consecutive
quarters of increased profits. He turned an $800-million-dollara-
year company into a $50-billion-dollar international giant. He
projected his vision with his leadership maxims, such as, “If we
don’t have competitive advantage, we won’t compete” and “We
will be either number one or number two in every market segment,
or we will get out of that business.”
In every case, successful business leaders are those who
accurately assess the needs of the situation, make clear decisions,
and then take vigorous action. Leaders form a clear idea
of what needs to be done. They then have the ability to communicate
this vision to everyone whose help will be required
to fulfill it.
They motivate everyone around them to work
toward common goals. Unity of command, based on clear
objectives, offensive action, concentration of powers, the ability
to maneuver, excellent intelligence and knowledge of the market
situation—all lead to concerted action and business victory.