“Good morning. I hope you all have been able to sleep better than I have.”
He got a few tired smiles in reply.
“Well… at least we all know why we’re here. Let’s do the best we possibly can at this. The better job we do at planning out possible Chinese attack strategies and tactics, the better our nation will be able to prepare.”
“Amen,” someone said in the back. There were several nods of approval at that. Most of the group had progressed from the frantic denials and arguments of last night into a patriotic eagerness to contribute.
“So…” He looked at everyone in the room. He saw Lena in the back of the room, standing by the window. She had an encouraging smile and gave him a polite nod, as if to prod him along.
Natesh cleared his throat. He said, “Let’s look at the facts. We started to examine some of the numbers yesterday. On everyone’s desk is an official report that compares China and the US. It’s a threat assessment conducted jointly by the CIA and the Pentagon last year that essentially does what we’re going to do today. It’s a SWOT analysis. For those of you that aren’t familiar, SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. But what took the CIA and the Pentagon over six months to conclude, I can sum up in two sentences. One: China is really big. And two: the United States has a military technology advantage. Let me ask you all a question. If you all have ten men and I have just one… but my one has a gun whereas your ten men have swords… how would you attack me?”
“I’d rush you,” said a young man in the front row.
“Alright. So, rushing the man with a gun, that would be an example of a tactic we could use. We, if we were the Chinese, could gather as many troops as possible and start ramping up production of military assets. We could start massing troops on US beachheads and overcome the American military with overwhelming force. But I can tell you from my experience in business strategy that this may not be the best tactic to use if it is not accompanied by other strong initiatives. Our strategy must also take into account our long-term goals. Our strategy will help us to identify the best tactical options. We can then make a series of tactical choices with our end goal in mind.”
Natesh looked out at his audience. Several of the military men had looks of skepticism on their faces. They saw a young Indian man trying to teach them about military strategy. That was fine with Natesh. Let them think what they want. He clenched his jaw a few times and focused on Lena, standing in the back of the room. She gave him a thumbs up. She really was a nice coach.
Natesh’s voice grew stronger. “What can China do better than the United States? And when you think about this, I want you all to keep thinking about the stated objectives that our spy uncovered. We went over them last night. Objective One: Capture and Permanently Occupy the United States. What are the implications of this? How does that limit China’s tactical choices?”
Brooke said, “If China wants long-term control over US territory, then they would likely want to do minimal damage. You don’t want to dent up a car before you steal it. That means they’d use non-nuclear tactics to preserve infrastructure.”
David raised his hand. “If they want to be in the US long-term, that also means that they have got to plan to win hearts and minds. Kind of like what we tried to do in Iraq.”
Natesh pointed at them both. “Exactly. Now you’re thinking about this the right way. What advantages does China have that they could leverage?”
People started to shout out ideas. The energy of a high-participation classroom took hold. In a strange way, people were into this. He let the group conversation keep going for a while. He wanted everyone to get comfortable contributing and talking openly. There was a good discussion of several different ways China could capitalize on their size and resources.
After about twenty minutes, Natesh looked at his watch and said, “Okay. We’re doing great. Let’s recap. We talked about Chinese advantages: size, first-mover advantage, surprise, industrial capacity, and quantity of certain assets. We discussed how the US is more technologically advanced with most weapons. I heard someone mention that this could be an interesting route to explore as an opportunity for China instead of a weakness. In the business world, this is a valuable way to unlock competitive advantage. If we really can turn a perceived strength into a weakness, that should be a major part of our focus. Let’s flag that one and come back to it. Okay, so pulling these first few ideas all together: How does China execute a surprise attack that allows them to maximize first-mover advantage, take out America’s technological advantage, and leverage the numerical advantage of their troops? Secondly, how does China keep hold of the United States territory long-term without destroying needed infrastructure or creating a resistance movement? Does everyone agree that these were a few of our initial killer questions?”
People gave cordial yet uneasy nods. It was hard to feel patriotic about planning your nation’s invasion.
“Okay, let’s take a five-minute break.”
The group got up and scattered to bathrooms and stocked refrigerators. Natesh uncapped a plastic water bottle and took a swig as he went back to the podium. Bill and David were there waiting for him.
David said, “Hey, nice job so far.”
“Thank you, David. I appreciate the participation.”
Bill said, “Yep, I think this group should do a fine job at this. I just wish I’d known it was going to take this long.”
“Oh? You got somewhere to be?” David said.
Bill looked uncomfortable, like he hadn’t meant to share. “Well. The truth is, Allison’s been sick.”
David looked at Natesh and then back to Bill. “Oh. Hey, I’m sorry to hear that.”
Bill said, “Ah, it’s alright. It’s been going on for a few years now, on and off. I agreed with my boss that I would go on this trip just a few days ago, before we knew her results. But just a few hours before I left, we found out. I told her I would cancel the trip, but she said the chemo wouldn’t start until I got back.”
Natesh looked down at the floor. He was still in his twenties. He’d never known anyone with cancer. But he knew what it was like to lose a family member. “Bill, I am so sorry. Please let me know if there’s anything I can do.”
Bill looked up as if he’d snapped out of a spell. “Oh, ah, thanks there, Natesh. Naw, you don’t worry about it. Sorry to bring it up. It’s just been on my mind. Let’s just get back to work and get this done right.” David and Bill walked up the stairs of the stadium-seating classroom as Natesh rechecked his notes.
After everyone sat back down, he began, “I was not always a California guy. I went to high school in the Big Apple. I remember one field trip we took when I was seventeen. We went to see this professional pickpocket, if you can believe it. This guy had learned the trade from his family but he didn’t want to be a criminal himself. So he decided to teach seminars and do shows about being a pickpocket. He would call people up on stage and say, “Hi, my name is so and so, and in less than three minutes, I’m going to take your wallet.” And the thing is… he would do just that. It was unbelievable to see. And the audience members who were up there on the stage would have no idea it had happened until after the fact.”
Natesh was getting comfortable now. He walked down from the stage and up the stairs, the way Lena had yesterday when they had all arrived. There she was, still in the back of the class. She wasn’t looking at him now. Natesh saw her watching people and then writing notes in her book.
“This fellow was a professional pickpocket. But not the kind that made a living taking people’s money. This was a man who had learned how to do all of those things on the street, but now lived an honest life by performing for audiences and showing people how it was done. He was incredible. I saw him take a man’s wallet, then his cell phone, and even his wristwatch without him knowing it. But that wasn’t all. He actually took the man’s eyeglasses off his face. The man’s eyeglasses. I know it’s hard to believe, and I wouldn’t believe it if I hadn’t seen it myself.”