How to Overcome Organizational Friction

As you carry out a plan, friction is inevitable. Good CEOs are ready for it.

In his classic text On War, first published in 1832, the Prussian general Carl von Clausewitz explores the complexities of large-scale military engagements. The book spends a whole chapter on the concept of "friction"—the accumulated difficulties of the battlefield that, as Clausewitz puts it, “distinguish real War from War on paper.”

In other words, friction is the difference between a clear, well-conceived battle plan and the bloody, confusing reality of battle.

Though On War appeared nearly two decades ago, any modern leader, especially a CEO, intuitively understands what Clausewitz means by friction—all those unseen factors that derail our careful plans and brilliant strategies. Today, we often sum up the idea in a quote attributed to Clausewitz: “No plan survives first contact with the enemy.”