Red Teaming: Transform Your Business by Thinking Like the Enemy

by Bryce G. Hoffman

THE GAME-CHANGING APPROACH TO STRATEGY AND PLANNING THAT WILL KEEP YOUR BUSINESS AHEAD OF THE COMPETITIONDeveloped by the military and intelligence agencies, red teaming is a revolutionary way to stress-test strategies, flush out unseen threats and missed opportunities, and execute more successfully in an increasingly uncertain world.Red teaming makes critical and contrarian thinking part of the planning process, forcing companies to take a hard look at their assumptions, examine the ways in which plans could fail, and carefully consider alternative explanations and perspectives. By embracing red teaming, leaders in companies of every size and in every industry will be able to plan better, innovate and make their businesses one of the disruptors in the marketplace, rather than one of the disrupted. Don't get left behind.Red teaming can help any company plan better, anticipate emerging threats and avoid potentially disastrous mistakes - from mistimed product launches to ill-conceived acquisitions. Drawing on the latest research in cognitive psychology, red teaming is specifically designed to overcome the mental blind spots and biases companies and individuals fall victim to when making big decisions or trying to solve complex problems. Red teaming features in the decision-making processes of today's most successful companies, from Amazon and Google to Ford and Toyota. As the first civilian to graduate from the US Army's elite red team leaders course, Bryce Hoffman is uniquely placed to reveal a clear set of tools and techniques that will enable every company, department, team and organisation to adopt this game-changing method into their business too.'Red Teaming is further proof that Bryce Hoffman is one of the great business writers and thinkers of our time. This is a book that every business and team needs to read NOW! - Jon Gordon, bestselling author of The Energy Bus and You Win in the Locker Room First'Another home run for Bryce Hoffman. Red teaming methods can correct overconfidence and impulsive decision making - just what we need today' - Gary Klein, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, MacroCognition LLC, and author of Sources of Power

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Entrepreneurship, Management, Leadership

335 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 16, 2017

Reviews

[Jo-Ann Duff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Red Teaming was an idea born in the military and focusses on thinking like the enemy, spotting threats before they do and causing disruption. I was looking for some business inspiration and had my eye on Red Teaming, but for some reason, I kept shuffling it down the TBR pile.  Finally, after a couple of weeks I got to it and tried to give it a red-hot crack.  I really did try.

The first couple of quite a lengthy intro and scene setting chapters were very heavily geared toward military tours and to be honest, it turned me right off. You know those books where the words just swim over the page and not into your head? Yeah, that. I understood there needed to be some explaination, but it was just too long and too heavy for me. 

Strategy can be taken from military operations into the boardroom and behind the concept, but Red Teaming as a book just didn't resonate with me. Your average middle manager might have a team of so-so workers or a project that never seems to end, and they may be looking for some practical tools to well, sort the sh*t out, and Red Teaming may well get picked up and bought in the thousands, but will it be really useful?  It's not all bad. There are some quality tips in here and some good models for picking and managing your Red Team, with a strong focus on challenging the status quo and being objective with your business plan; A real change or die approach which made sense, but nothing groundbreaking to me.  Chapters start with some great inspirational quotes from the likes of Winston Churchill and Steve Jobs with some interesting case studies and examples from big brands such as Apple, Google, and Toyota, but I had to skip a substantial part of the book to get there.

Red Teaming - Final Thoughts

The problem is that Red Teaming gets to the good stuff eventually, but by the time it did, I had pulled the parachute cord and jumped.

[Book Grocer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Purchase Red Teaming here for just $10!

In this short yet effective book, Hoffman looks at how businesses can utilise military thinking to be more succesful. You will find yourself able to implement the strategies quite easily. Hoffman is clearly knowledgeable and manages to convey information without resorting to jargon.

Elisa, Book Grocer

[Daniel Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I read it, I felt like I'd read it before. In any case, Red Team provides a framework to challenge the way you think and so expose your blind spots and redress your cognitive biases. Brilliant, practical!

[Siddharth Kumar · Rating 4 out of 5]

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