Unquestionably the single most important decision a sponsor makes is who will lead the initiative.

I have found it useful to return to the classics when asked to give guidance on this topic. Borrowing from writings on ancient Chinese military strategies*, T’ai Kung advised King Wu that when selecting a general, 5 critical talents and 10 errors must be considered. While waging war and leading projects are obviously different activities, from a leadership perspective they share more similarities than differences.

Talents

• Courage: being courageous blocks being overwhelmed
• Wisdom: being wise avoids being forced into turmoil
• Benevolence: being benevolent shows respect for the team
• Trustworthiness: being trustworthy counteracts deceitfulness
• Loyalty: being loyal prevents treachery

Errors

• Being courageous and treating death lightly: can be destroyed by violence
• Being hasty and impatient: can be destroyed by persistence
• Being greedy and loving profit: can be bribed
• Being benevolent but unable to inflict suffering: can be worn down
• Being wise but afraid: can be distressed
• Being trustworthy and liking to trust others: can be deceived
• Being scrupulous and incorruptible but not loving men: can be insulted
• Being wise but indecisive: can be suddenly attacked
• Being resolute and self-reliant: can be confounded by events
• Being fearful while liking to entrust responsibility to others: can be tricked

As T’ai Kung said, “The fate of the state lies with the general.” So to the fate of an initiative lies with its leader.

*From “The Seven Military Classics of Ancient China, T’ai Kung’s Six Secret Teachings: A Discussion of Generals”, translated by Ralph D. Sawyer, Westview Press, 1993