Enders Game Management - Case Study Example

PLEASE INSERT HERE What Would Ender Do? At the beginning of “Ender’s Game”, the reader is immediately confronted with the main problematic of the novel: the world had been attacked by an alien species, and it had barely survived. Earth was in the middle of preparing for a war and all the planet’s resources were being poured into the Battle School program. Unbeknownst to the public was the fact that the troops and ships that were meant to wage war against the insect-like aliens called the Formics (or Buggers) had already been sent right after the first war had ended. There was no upcoming invasion, only an attack that would ensure the safety and survival of the human race. All that was needed was the right man to lead humankind’s greatest army. Or the right child. The task of saving the world has fallen to six-year-old Andrew ‘Ender’ Wiggin, and as he grows up in a special military training facility hovering over Earth he is guided by International Fleet officer Col. Graff into becoming the leader that humanity needs him to be. The novel portrays Ender as the ultimate commander – charismatic, non-egocentric, and innovative. He displayed advanced analytical skills and an ability to adapt to change, as well as strength in character – characteristics that are desirable in a leader (Toney). But more than being an ideal leader, Ender’s methods and team building strategies also reflect Henri Fayol’s principles of management. Henri Fayol, often described as the founder of the Administration School and the French pioneer of management theory, presented a set of principles of management to aid in change and organization, decision making, and improvement of skills (Witzel). We shall then seek to understand elements of the novel “Ender’s Game” through Henri Fayol’s principles of management. Fayol’s Principles of Management Henri Fayol learned his administrative and management skills first hand as a director and engineer of a mining business. He published his book “Administration Industrielle et Generale” in 1916 to present a consistent set of rules that could be applied to any organization which sought to run properly (Hart). In his book, he studied and classified managerial processes and methods, presenting them in the form of “administrative science” which could act as a guide for any potential leader or business man. Thus it is a fair means of exploring efficiency and effectiveness in terms of leadership skills such as that of Ender Wiggin. He identified managerial and administrative principles that he found was common in all organizations: Specialization or division of labor, authority with responsibility, discipline, unity of command, unity of direction, centralization, line or chain of authority, order, equity, initiative, and esprit de corps (Marino). Division of Labor As the leader of an organization or group, it is difficult not to fall into the ego trap, a mistake that would include thinking that you can do everything by yourself. It is possible that one of the gravest mistakes that a leader can make is to take on all the work, to fail to efficiently distribute labor among subordinates. This is a trap that Bonzo Madrid, the commander of Salamander Army and Ender’s first commander, falls into which Ender immediately recognizes. Refusing to see Ender as any more than a launchy, Bonzo does not recognize Ender as a soldier which effectively turns him into a liability instead of an asset. Bonzo also ran his army with an iron fist – he had all the control. None of his toon leaders were allowed initiative during battles, they were only expected to take orders and execute them. The disadvantage of holding such tight reigns over one’s subordinates was made clear during Salamander Army’s first battle against Ender’s army, the Dragon Army. When Bonzo became frozen none of his toon leaders took the initiative to come up with a counter-attack or call a retreat – they remained pinned against the wall and were easy fodder for Ender’s soldiers. As opposed to Bonzo’s egocentric leadership methods, Ender relied heavily on his toon leaders. To allow for flexibility and speed, he divided his army into five toons (plus Bean’s sixth toon) as opposed to the usual four. He simply trained his soldiers as best as he could and made sure that his toon leaders had a good grasp of battle room strategies and tactics, and then turned them loose during a battle with minimal guidance. The method was so effective that Dragon army remained undefeated until Ender was graduated and shipped to command school. Authority with Responsibility However, to be able to effectively delegate, the leader must be able to become a respectable authority figure to his subordinates, which can be achieved through the principle authority with responsibility. Authority with responsibility is coupled with the right to give commands, which is an essential part of leadership because the lack of authority or respect for the leader would effectively destroy group dynamics and ruin any organization or group. A leader without the authority to lead would only have a disorganized mob in his hands An example of an irresponsible and ineffective commander is Rose de Nose of Rat army. Rose did not foster respect from his soldiers. Rather, he bunked with them, made lewd jokes for them, and essentially dropped his leadership role completely. He did not maintain discipline in the soldiers quarters and made rules which he did not enforce. In the novel, the Rat army barracks was described as “rumpled, cluttered and noisy.” (Card) It goes on to state that “after Bonzo, Ender thought that undiscipline would be a welcome relief. Instead, he found that he had come to expect quiet and order, and the disorder made him uncomfortable.” (Card) Ender on the other hand went out of his way to maintain his soldiers’ respect for him and his authority as their commander. He maintained a professional distance from them, he was sparse but fair with his praise, and he made sure that his army knew that he knew what he was doing by explaining the reasoning behind his orders. Thus, his commands were received and followed without mutiny, and with even a hint of reverence. Discipline Ender also enforced discipline within his army. He expected them to follow his commands to the letter, a mentality he began fostering the first day that he met them – he called for his army to move out in five minutes, and, regardless of whether they were suited up in their flash suits or naked, they moved out. In leadership and managerial skills, discipline means one thing: subordinates must learn to obey their commanders or leaders. But this is a dynamic and two-sided working relationship. Subordinates will obey only when those of rank do their part by providing good and effective leadership. Unity of Command Part of providing effective leadership is to ensure that for every organization, there is only one person on top of the ladder, that there should be no conflict in the line of command. This is because, as the old proverb goes, no man can have two masters. To violate this principle would lead to confusion, conflict, and ultimately the weakening of the organization. (Wren, Bedeian and Breeze) An example of disunity of command in “Ender’s Game” would be the dual leadership between Dink Meeker and Rose de Nose of Rat army. While Rose was the official commander of Rat army, Dink Meeker ran his toon as if it wasn’t a part of the main contingent. The division of forces lessened the effectiveness of what should have been a whole army of forty-one soldiers but was instead an army of thirty-one with a minor contingent of ten. Unity of Direction Closely related to the principle of unity of command is the principle of unity of direction. It simply states that people belonging to the same organization or group must have the same objectives and should engage in the same kind of activities to ensure unity and, most importantly, coordination. Thus, it was vital for Ender to have his army train together as a whole to allow them to learn how to become a team. It was also important that they no longer participate in training sessions outside of Dragon army to avoid interference or disparity, a rule he imposed right after his army’s first training session. Centralization Centralization in an organization is inevitable and is in fact enforced by the principle of unity of command. While the leader can choose to stifle individual initiative and create a rigid structure, he runs the risk of everything falling apart when he is incapacitated, which is what happened to Bonzo Madrid in the battle between Salamander army and Dragon army. The leader can also choose to encourage individual initiative and delegate key responsibilities to his subordinates but runs the risk of mediocre results if these subordinates are not sufficiently trained. Thus, a balance must be struck. This delicate balance can be found in the manner that Ender retained his authority while also delegating his command to his toon leaders. This was only possible because of the importance that he gave to other principles of management, such as discipline and authority with responsibility. Line of Authority In delegating to his toon leaders, Ender had to create a line of authority or chain-of-command in his army. In an organization that is made up of numerous members, a time may come when a leader will be unable to give direct commands to each of his members, and in Ender’s case, to each of his soldiers. Thus is the purpose of the toon leaders. In a battle, it is the toon leaders who receive Ender’s commands which they then pass on to their soldiers. They are the ones who ensure that the overall plan is followed and achieved. Given a situation, Ender’s toon leaders are expected to adapt with little guidance (given the limited communication allowed in a battle room) and execute the general strategy given by Ender. The toon leaders also have second-in-commands or seconds who can take over if a toon leader is incapacitated during battle. Thus, the chain of command will remain unbroken despite losses and the army will continue to function even without direct supervision. Order In addition to everyone having a place in the chain-of-command, there is should also be an order within every organization. That is to say that there should be someone responsible for everything being done within an organization. As the saying goes, there should be “a place for everything and everything in its place.” (Wren, Bedeian and Breeze) This allows an organization to avoid waste of time and to avoid conflict within its members. An example of a near violation of order is when Ender’s respect for authority was divided between Rose de Nose and Dink Meeker during his stint in Rat army. While Ender recognized Rose’s place in the order of the army as the commander and sought to obey his rules, Dink disrupted the order by telling Ender that Rose only had as much authority as Ender was willing to give him. This caused Ender to act insubordinately towards Rose de Nose and created conflict between them. Equity To avoid conflict and to create a good working environment, equity should also be considered. That is, there should be a balance between professional distance and treating subordinates kindly. While Ender initially employs Graff’s means of creating divisions within a group and sets Bean apart by calling attention to him during their first practice, he later proves to be a just and fair commander. He offers criticism and suggestions when it is needed, and gives praise when it has been earned. Thus, Ender is able to maintain a combination of kindness and justice, and earns the respect of his soldiers. Initiative More than simply earning the respect needed to be able to command them, Ender encourages his men to take initiative, to simply understand Ender’s general strategy and employ their own tactics and maneuvers in line with that strategy. In fact, this is Ender’s trademark style in commanding, an approach which caught the other armies off-guard and changed the way battles were conducted for Battle School. Allowing his soldiers to take initiative proved to be a source of strength for Dragon army, especially through Bean, who with his little force of men managed to come up with creative ways of attacking and distracting the opposing armies. While allowing subordinates to take on such important roles may be a sacrifice of personal vanity for the commander, Ender was never one to put personal vanity over efficiency and his army’s ability to deliver. Esprit de Corps Finally, there is the principle of esprit de corps, which is probably most appropriate principle of management that can be applied in “Ender’s Game”. The principle of esprit de corps emphasizes the importance of keeping the morale of an organization (or in this case an army) high because it will certainly affect their output which will inevitably affect the organization. In “Ender’s Game”, despite the fact that the games were obviously being stacked against Dragon army, the army did not lose morale because of Ender’s almost legendary reputation among the battle school kids. For every impossible victory that their army achieved, Ender’s soldiers became even more confident, assured, and effective inside the battle room. Their belief in each other and in their commander kept on being bolstered. It was Ender who lost morale and lost belief in the system. Despite being the commander of his own army, Ender was still a student in battle school and was a subordinate to the teachers such as Graff and Anderson. During the last battle against two armies which Ender won with crucial help from Bean’s toon, Ender acted as though he had completely lost trust in the system of battle school. He said “I’m not going to play anymore. No more practices. No more battles.” (Card) This effectively displays the negative effect that low morale can have on people, which will then lower the efficiency of the whole organization. While it is reasonable to expect good output from people, it is against an organization’s well-being to work its members to the ground or break their spirit. Conclusion In using Henri Fayol’s principles of management to delve into Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game and his main character Ender Wiggin, we find that Ender is indeed a shining example of an effective, efficient, and upright leader. He was able to reach a level of competence to earn their respect, and was also able to strike the right balance of authority and discipline, and of justice and kindness to forge an effectual army that would achieve his goals and have the skills to keep up with his strategies. Thus, in making our decisions within our own organizations or companies, if we need a role model to help us function effectively and to forge our own team, we can always ask ourselves – what would Ender do? Bibliography (MLA) Card, Orson Scott. Enders Game. New York: Tom Doherty Associates, 1977. Hart, Mike. Fayol (1841-1925) Functions and Principles of Management. 5 October 2006. 10 April 2009 . Marino, Vincent. 14 Principles of Management. 2009. 10 April 2009 . Toney, Frank. "The Incompetent CEO." Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies (1998): 84-98. Witzel, Morgan. Fifty Key Figures in Management. United Kingdom: Routledge, 2003. Wren, Daniel A., Arthur G. Bedeian and John D. Breeze. "The foundations of Henri Fayol’s administrative." Management Decision (2002): 906-918. Read More