Operations

5 Business Lessons from The Battle of The Bulge

Dec. 16, 2016

The Battle of the Bulge began with a ferocious and devastating attack by the German Army on American troops across Belgium, Luxembourg, and France, on December 16, 1944. While unsuccessful, the surprise achieved by the Nazi German offensive and the uncoordinated initial Allied response offers several critical business lessons during this time of unprecedented political change and tepid economic growth.

Chad Storlie

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The Battle of the Bulge began with a ferocious and devastating attack by the German Army on American troops across Belgium, Luxembourg, and France, on December 16, 1944. It was a desperate attempt to halt the Allied advance — and give the German the opportunity to regroup and resist the Soviet Red Army advancing from the East. While unsuccessful, the surprise achieved by the Nazi German offensive in the Ardennes, and the uncoordinated initial Allied response, offers several critical business lessons during this current time of unprecedented political change and tepid economic growth.

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Chad Storlie is the author of “Combat Leader to Corporate Leader” and “Battlefield to Business Success.” His advises organizations and individuals of ways to translate and apply military skills to business because they produce results immediately and are cost effective. He is a retired U.S. Army Special Forces Lieutenant Colonel with 20+ years of active and reserve service in infantry, Special Forces, and joint headquarters units.

Chad holds a B.A. from Northwestern University and an M.B.A. from Georgetown University, and is an adjunct Lecturer of Marketing at Creighton University in Omaha. In addition to teaching, he is a mid-level marketing executive and has worked in marketing and sales roles for various companies, including General Electric, Comcast, and Manugistics.

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This gallery was originally published on American Machinist. American Machinist is a companion site of IndustryWeek and part of Penton's Manufacturing & Supply Chain Group.