Why You Need to Stress Test Your Strategies (and Tactics)

Corporate war gaming, a strategy borrowed from the military, stress-tests business strategies before market deployment. Arjan Singh, an adjunct professor at Southern Methodist University and author of "Competitive Success," explains how this process helps companies avoid blind spots and innovate by simulating competitive scenarios. War games exist on three levels: strategic, operational, and tactical, each addressing different time horizons and business questions. Singh highlights the "battle for mobility" exercise, where students role-play companies like Tesla and Toyota to predict the future of transportation. He recounts a client success story where war gaming prepared a pharmaceutical company for FDA rejection, enabling them to recover and eventually gain approval for a blockbuster drug. Singh advocates for incorporating war gaming into annual planning and even individual career strategies.