Operation Valkyrie : Lessons for Managers & Business Leaders

The four key lessons that I learnt from a movie I saw recently are, I believe, the most important in anyone’s work life. This film is based on a true event that took place during World War II. It was drawn from failed attempt on the life of Adolf Hitler. The movie revolves around the main protagonist (Colonel Claus Von Sauffenberg) and the plot he masterminded to carry out the assassination.

This officer, despite being part of a rigid system or an organization, takes a stand for what he believes is right & for the good of the country. The opinion’s & belief of the majority of his peers & superiors doesn’t stop him from taking the stand that was eventually proved right and he was recognized as a hero in his country post the end of World War. While we know of many heroes in the annals of history who stood for what was right, but seldom do we come across someone who fought the system from within. He, against overwhelming opposition and at the risk of damage to his brilliant career record and great personal risk, decided to be unmoved by the expanse of system deterioration.

Our ability to stand for what is right in face of adversities & opposition determines & showcase out true character as individuals. Most of us have at some point on our careers have had to face this dilemma of having to take a position on what was the right thing to do or what believe is right vs. what was being done by the majority. In such situations, we have to decide between surviving in an organization , by being in line with the general thought process or be sidelined ( or worse perish in the organization) by airing what we believe is the right thing to do. It is in situations like these that we need to hold our ground, make our arguments if what we truly believe in our line of thought. While most of us decide to toe the line of either our superiors or fall in line with the group mentality, it is these select few who think differently & are able to hold course, who discover new lands & eventually reap the rewards.

Another key lesson for me was the team’s genuine contribution & belief in the plan, in spite of their individual differences and overwhelming odds of success. This could have only been possible due to their belief in their mission. Col. Sauffenberg & his team believed that their mission (of overthrowing Hitler) was bigger than them as individuals and for the greater good of their country. This belief in their mission & goal made them impervious to the risks that they faced. In organizations, a majority of the populace do not relate to the mission or goals. Mission statements neither reflect the belief of the team nor is it worthy enough to fight for. Mission & Goals of any team or organization have to be reflective of the greater good that the people see in being associated with one another. In armed forces, solders place their country & regiment honor before them. This deep belief that they are doing something that is worthy is what wins' wars. If we as leaders were to be able to create goals that was actually worthy for our people to fight for (and not just be limited to economic goals) imagine the wonders it can do to our team and the kind of motivated teams we can have.

Sauffenberg’s ability to think through the situation is also a key lesson. He realizes early on, that his comrades, though, eager to assassinate Hitler, had no plan in place to manage the possibility of post assassination chaos & anarchy. They had overlooked the fact that all plans must have a follow through action. To counter this, he puts into place an operational plan that would kick-in in the face of any national emergency (including possible death of Hitler). Many times, we take steps in our businesses without thinking about the possible ripple effect it may have in some other scenario and situation. This myopic view is nurtured in most organizations as performance & results are almost always viewed on a monthly & quarterly basis and not too much thought is paid to how these actions affect the organizations in other spheres of existence. Leaders need to be vigilant that every plan that they create should take care of the follow through which ensures that all loose ends get tucked in quickly.

The last & most important lesson was the fact that even the best laid plans go wrong and therefore back-up plans are vital. The fact that there was no back-up plan, in case of an unsuccessful assassination attempt, clearly led to chaos in the team and delays. Our ability to plan for both success & failure is equally important. This lesson is something that most of us as leaders ignore, fully believing that our planning is immaculate & based on the best data points available. We forget that business is as dynamic as war and the best possible laid out plans almost always change due to either strategic shifts or tactical changes in the field. We as leaders need to be conscious of the signals we get from the field and always have a break out plan in place.

As business leaders we should be able to draw on the four lessons of Operation Valkyrie i.e. ability to take a stand for what we believe is right for the organization, creating goals that are worth fighting for and are not just about the economics, planning keeping in mind that data points do not always tell the complete story and we should have our ear to the ground, and lastly to always plan for managing both success & possible failures.