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Lessons from a Warzone: How to be a Resilient Leader in Times of Crisis
A STORY OF HOPE, PERSEVERANCE AND RESILIENCE IN THE MIDST OF WAR
Louai Al Roumani was head of finance and planning at one of the largest banks in Syria, when the war broke out in 2011.
In Lessons from a Warzone , Al Roumani shares his very personal account of coping with the day-to-day realities of leading an organization in dangerous and hostile conditions. His story shows how inspiration can come from the unlikeliest of places - from the timeless wisdom of merchants in ancient souks to the changing patterns of military checkpoints. During that time, not only did the bank remain robust when others faltered - it thrived and became the undisputed leading bank as people's trust in its capability to safeguard their lifelong savings strengthened.
In this book, Al Roumani distills the knowledge and skills he and his colleagues developed while steering the bank through four impossible years into ten lessons applicable to any leader facing a crisis today. His valuable, and often counterintuitive, advice - ranging from resisting over-planning to hacking your own IT department to cutting costs (but not morale) - will help anyone understand how to be resilient even in the most challenging of times.
Louai Al Roumani was head of finance and planning at one of the largest banks in Syria, when the war broke out in 2011.
In Lessons from a Warzone , Al Roumani shares his very personal account of coping with the day-to-day realities of leading an organization in dangerous and hostile conditions. His story shows how inspiration can come from the unlikeliest of places - from the timeless wisdom of merchants in ancient souks to the changing patterns of military checkpoints. During that time, not only did the bank remain robust when others faltered - it thrived and became the undisputed leading bank as people's trust in its capability to safeguard their lifelong savings strengthened.
In this book, Al Roumani distills the knowledge and skills he and his colleagues developed while steering the bank through four impossible years into ten lessons applicable to any leader facing a crisis today. His valuable, and often counterintuitive, advice - ranging from resisting over-planning to hacking your own IT department to cutting costs (but not morale) - will help anyone understand how to be resilient even in the most challenging of times.
224 pages, Paperback
Published June 1, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 29, 2021
No matter how tough times get, you should not allow increasing chaos to permit you to accept a more lax environment. Engaging in acts that instil a sense of normalcy, even if it's superficially so sometimes, promote your commitment to orderliness and adherence to the rules.
Most of this book was about being flexible in times of crisis and inevitable change due to external forces, but while you're being flexible, you must also rigidly adhere to your vision, core values, and the way you treat people. I learned a lot from this book and enjoyed reading it much more than I expected to enjoy reading about running a bank in wartime. At the end of the book, I realized that I had read several chapters that stressed the importance of actions over words - to your customers/clients and to your employees and partners - but while I was reading, I didn't feel like it was repetitive at all.
I would recommend it to anyone, even if you already know about change management. The perspective and examples made me think about things I already heard about in a new way, and taught me much more on top of that.
May 10, 2020
مطالعهی خوبی بود، بالاخص برای بیتجربهای مثل من. کتاب مبتنی بر یافتهها و تجربیات یک مدیر جوان و رده بالا در یک بانک خصوصی در کشور سوریه است که به مدت ۴ سال تحت شرایط بحرانی/جنگی به کار مشغول بوده. چیزی که نویسنده سعی در انتقالش داره این واقعیت است که قالب آنچه طی کتابها، مقالات و آموزشها برای مدیریت یاد میگیریم، نتیجه ی مطالعه و تجربه در بستری آرام و تقریبا پیشبینی پذیر هستند که در شرایط جنگی و بحرانی عملا هیچ کدام راهگشا نمیتوانند باشند. چیزی که در شرایط یک بحران تمام عیار میتواند واقعا مفید و سازنده باشد، حکمتهای عمیق ترند! و از همین رو پیشنهاداتی میدهد؛ مثل نگاه دوباره و با چشم باز به معنای زمان، هزینه، شاخصها (متریکها) ، تحلیل، و روابط.
پ.ن.: جدای از دیدگاه مدیریتی، به نظرم کتاب خوبیه حتی برای توسعه شخصی
پ.ن.: این جمله از کتاب هم من رو به فکر فرو برد
who wants to survive, when they can actually grow and soar?
پ.ن. این رو هم اضافه کنم: چیزی که نباید خواننده فراموش کنه، اینه که شررکت مورد نظر برای برخی تصمیمگیریها و تخصیص منابع مالی تقریبا مشکلی نداشته، که به نظرم خیلی مهمه.
پ.ن.: جدای از دیدگاه مدیریتی، به نظرم کتاب خوبیه حتی برای توسعه شخصی
پ.ن.: این جمله از کتاب هم من رو به فکر فرو برد
who wants to survive, when they can actually grow and soar?
پ.ن. این رو هم اضافه کنم: چیزی که نباید خواننده فراموش کنه، اینه که شررکت مورد نظر برای برخی تصمیمگیریها و تخصیص منابع مالی تقریبا مشکلی نداشته، که به نظرم خیلی مهمه.
March 3, 2021
What an exceptional book describing exceptional times.
If you are a leader of a business that got impacted during Covid-19 or any other crisis. Then make sure you read this book and takes notes.
If you are a leader of a business that got impacted during Covid-19 or any other crisis. Then make sure you read this book and takes notes.
April 22, 2020
Lessons of a Warzone is an adventure of an autobiography that paints a picture of wisdoms learned through the heartbreaking Syrian war. It goes in just enough depth about tools to help encounter a time of crises, many of which are instinctual, yet sparsely conducted.
For a non-business or non-finance person, this was eloquently written and easy to understand, yet still keeping the fundamental core of bank and business strategies. I am no business owner, banker or financial folk, just a mere scientist; however, all aspects of Louai’s lessons can be transferable to my career path, as well as any other.
One of my favourite aspects of this book is that Louai was able to instil insight on different strategies he has learned from discreet places. All of these discreet insights portray beautiful snippets of the core of Levantine Arabic, and more specifically at times a Syrian culture. As a Lebanese person raised with many Syrian friends, this book allowed me to not only learn some strategies but imagine the beauty of Syria that I have never had the pleasure of meeting. Thank you Louai for sharing your wisdom and incredible experience with us!
For a non-business or non-finance person, this was eloquently written and easy to understand, yet still keeping the fundamental core of bank and business strategies. I am no business owner, banker or financial folk, just a mere scientist; however, all aspects of Louai’s lessons can be transferable to my career path, as well as any other.
One of my favourite aspects of this book is that Louai was able to instil insight on different strategies he has learned from discreet places. All of these discreet insights portray beautiful snippets of the core of Levantine Arabic, and more specifically at times a Syrian culture. As a Lebanese person raised with many Syrian friends, this book allowed me to not only learn some strategies but imagine the beauty of Syria that I have never had the pleasure of meeting. Thank you Louai for sharing your wisdom and incredible experience with us!
April 21, 2020
This book is very interesting. It is specifically about doing business in a crisis but there are lessons about dealing with personal crisis, as well. This book is clearly written with specific summary points at the end of each chapter which can be very useful.
January 8, 2021
No better time for such book especially when the world is dealing with COVID-19 and its social and economical impact. Louai did an excellent job adding personal stories to each point. I loved every part of it. Highly recommended
January 21, 2021
This book is an engaging business reead on how to mannage in a crisis. While we hope not to be opperating in such a sittuation, the profund lessons of doing the right thing and never doing things by half should impact us all.
January 31, 2021
Excellent book with lessons to manage organisations in periods of crisis. Inspired by challenges faced by the Syrian war, all of the lessons are applicable to the current Covid crisis. Written with story telling that makes reading very easy.
January 24, 2021
Definitely put my work challenges into perspective, and some good lessons for resilience in crisis
August 14, 2026
جالب بود
December 29, 2020
Five stars because Lessons from a Warzone is such a singular book in the business category.
It needed to be written because there was nothing else like it. Al Roumani looked for case studies and texts in running a business in an extreme crisis and there were none. The standard sources for business reference were not useful, the advice was not applicable to running a network of banks during mortar attacks, with the threat of ISIS fanatics taking over,
It needed to be read because we are suddenly all in the middle of unprecedented crises – the pandemic, civil unrest, climate change – all feeding into one another.
I love the details of Arab culture – generosity, the importance of tea, the stories and legends that define Damascus. It grounded the accounts of dealing with operational and strategic business challenges in a real place and made me want to learn more about Syria and the Arab world.
There are two other things that endear the book to me. First, it is short, as every good business book should be. Second, the human passion, the intensity of the experience comes through vividly. The mix of drama and operational detail in the book feels so real to anyone who has been through a major crisis in a business (even if not as terrible as the Syrian War). There's no sentimentality here, but there is deep humanity. There are lessons learned, there is hope, there are flaws.
I'm personally – and professionally – grateful to Louai Al Roumani for writing this book. I hope I never have to live and work in a Warzone, but when we face crises in our lives and our businesses there are useful emotional and practical lessons there is huge value in reading the heartfelt and honest experiences of others.
I recommend this book with a grateful heart.
It needed to be written because there was nothing else like it. Al Roumani looked for case studies and texts in running a business in an extreme crisis and there were none. The standard sources for business reference were not useful, the advice was not applicable to running a network of banks during mortar attacks, with the threat of ISIS fanatics taking over,
It needed to be read because we are suddenly all in the middle of unprecedented crises – the pandemic, civil unrest, climate change – all feeding into one another.
I love the details of Arab culture – generosity, the importance of tea, the stories and legends that define Damascus. It grounded the accounts of dealing with operational and strategic business challenges in a real place and made me want to learn more about Syria and the Arab world.
There are two other things that endear the book to me. First, it is short, as every good business book should be. Second, the human passion, the intensity of the experience comes through vividly. The mix of drama and operational detail in the book feels so real to anyone who has been through a major crisis in a business (even if not as terrible as the Syrian War). There's no sentimentality here, but there is deep humanity. There are lessons learned, there is hope, there are flaws.
I'm personally – and professionally – grateful to Louai Al Roumani for writing this book. I hope I never have to live and work in a Warzone, but when we face crises in our lives and our businesses there are useful emotional and practical lessons there is huge value in reading the heartfelt and honest experiences of others.
I recommend this book with a grateful heart.
December 31, 2020
An absolute must-read - even for non-business readers.
Beyond covering the topics that are mentioned in the title, it covers a lot of points about the general lives of Arabs, which being one myself I can say this is something very rarely written about without being attached to war, terrorism, or something quite dark.
Louai's voice is very clear and very different from your regular, standard, and stuffy 'SUCCESS IS EVERYTHING' typical business books. The best way to describe it would be: The Dalai Lama and Warren Buffet had a baby, and it was Louai Al Roumani.
He gives incredible business insight, but always through compassion, and I LOVE that. I never thought I'd read a business book that would be almost poetic. It was almost like Lucretius' 'scientific epic poem' but instead with leadership/business and banking tips done in the most prosaic and natural way.
The book has some personal stories/memories, and many times the memories are so beautiful and heartwrenching but without the soppy, tragic feeling that kind of drag you down as you read them. It's a very positive and realistic view of the situation, without losing sight of the business.
I couldn't recommend it enough! This book was so good we bought three more as gifts to give out to friends.
Beyond covering the topics that are mentioned in the title, it covers a lot of points about the general lives of Arabs, which being one myself I can say this is something very rarely written about without being attached to war, terrorism, or something quite dark.
Louai's voice is very clear and very different from your regular, standard, and stuffy 'SUCCESS IS EVERYTHING' typical business books. The best way to describe it would be: The Dalai Lama and Warren Buffet had a baby, and it was Louai Al Roumani.
He gives incredible business insight, but always through compassion, and I LOVE that. I never thought I'd read a business book that would be almost poetic. It was almost like Lucretius' 'scientific epic poem' but instead with leadership/business and banking tips done in the most prosaic and natural way.
The book has some personal stories/memories, and many times the memories are so beautiful and heartwrenching but without the soppy, tragic feeling that kind of drag you down as you read them. It's a very positive and realistic view of the situation, without losing sight of the business.
I couldn't recommend it enough! This book was so good we bought three more as gifts to give out to friends.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews