Vol. 3, No. 5  

The Journal of Leadership Applications

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Ready, Aim, Fire

by

© 2005 William A. Cohen, PhD

Touro University International

and

The Institute of Leader Arts

“Ready,” “Aim,” “Fire,” are the three basic sequential commands given to direct accurately aimed fire, in the minimum time, against a target that has been identified as important  by a military leader in battle.  The commands are short and the sequence involves no wasted effort or time. Yet, these commands are intended not only for efficiency, but for effectiveness. 

All Available Resources Concentrated at the Right Place and Time                      When time is crucial and maximum firepower must be brought against a real live enemy who has the capacity to do your own organization great harm, all available force must be concentrated against a target in the shortest time possible to ensure the greatest shock power and probability of succeeding in overcoming or eliminating the threat, before the adversary can act first.

Even though accuracy is required, these commands preceded the availability of accurate weaponry.  When the weapons used in battle were highly inaccurate smoothbore muskets, similar commands were still employed to concentrate the firepower of those individual muskets available against a selected target. Individually, musket fire was inaccurate, but concentrated in this way, it was not only accurate, it was devastating. Before the advent of firearms, firepower from longbows, crossbows, and thrown spears were concentrated using the same model in almost the identical fashion. So the model has a long history of successful usage.

 The Importance of Ready, Aim, Fire as a Model                                                             Why did these commands evolve in just this way? Early battlefield commanders soon realized that simply launching a huge number of missiles, even though lethal, in the general direction of an enemy generally had only limited effect on the outcome of a particular action. To be effective, missiles had to be directed against a target. When concentrated in this fashion, a target could be neutralized or destroyed. Once this had been accomplished, the commander could then direct fire against a new target and repeat the process. This process could be continued indefinitely so long as the commander had the resources to maintain the momentum.

The Ready, Aim, Fire Model is Useful Off the Battlefield                                                    If we look at this simple ready, aim, fire model more closely, it becomes apparent that it is useful in the application of strategy to a number of different human endeavors, including business.

The first two elements of this series are strategic. For example, the command “Ready” assumes the identification and selection of the target.  If we are reflect on  a target market for a new product or service, we might select this important target market due to its size, growth, profit potential, the state of the competition at this particular time, the organization’s fit or match with the market, our goal or objectives, or some other factor or factors important to us.

The Aim command is also strategic.  Whereas during the “Ready” phase organizational fit is an important concern, we must now fit the product or service the organization offers to best satisfy the target market. In fact, it is our ability to construct this fit that defines the difference between marketing and selling. In selling the product or service is largely fixed, and the basic task of the seller is to persuade the target market to buy what already exists.  In marketing we attempt to uncover what the target market needs or wants first, and then design our product or service to fulfill the needs or wants we have identified before we ever approach a potential buyer or attempt to sell.

It is for this reason that  world famous management thinker, Peter Drucker, makes the point that if marketing were done perfectly, “selling” would be unnecessary since the seller would possess something that would already be highly desired by prospects and all that would be necessary would be to make the prospect aware that the product was available.

So, during the phase initiated by the command “Aim” we must make certain that we have the right product or service for this particular market and that the product or service we intend to offer has the correct attributes. That is, we want to offer exactly what this particular market wants at this particular time. During the aim phase, we may also further define our target market to identify a segment or segments of the overall target market that is particularly interested or desirous of our offering.

You might note how universal this ready, aim, fire model is. In this example, we’re talking about the introduction of a new product. However, the same is true when seeking a new job, or developing a career in your present industry, or in starting a new business. It is also necessary for good leadership in all situations. You can’t be everything to everybody, but you can define a target or understand those you desire to lead and begin and continue to develop yourself to best satisfy the demands of the target market you have chosen or the uniqueness of the followers you must influence and lead.

The Fire Phase is Tactical                                                                                                      Finally, we get to the Fire command. We must still pay attention during this tactical phase. Those who teach marksmanship caution neophytes not to jerk while pulling the trigger in firing a weapon, because if the trigger isn’t pulled smoothly, the aim is spoiled. At the moment of firing, the weapon is no longer on target. Therefore, despite all the good strategic work that has gone before in "ready" and "aim" you will still not hit the target.

In the example of a new product or service, the tactical variables we are concerned with may include the distribution system or systems we choose, our advertising, our sales force and their methods, training, compensation, and motivation, our pricing, sales promotional methods we use, and more. None of this can be ignored.

Yet contrary to the belief of some, no matter how good your performance in the fire phase, it cannot overcome the preparation that must go before during the “ready” and “aim” phases. If these first two phases are done poorly, your fire phase will be less than optimal, no matter how good a salesperson you are, or how brilliant a copywriter for advertisements. This is because though your firing may be perfect, you may be firing at the wrong target, or with the wrong weapon to be fully effective. So, all three phases must be done correctly to be successful.

The three sequential commands, Ready, Aim, Fire originate from observations over the millennia.  They are not complex or difficult to understand or to implement. However, these simple words are extremely powerful. The commands represent a  model  which are effective both in the application of a strategy and in leading an organization.

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