Declassified: How to prevent progress.

German business magazine brand eins recently did a special issue on the subject of “Innovation”. In it they published some sections of the “Simple Sabotage Field Manual”, a little brochure that was put together during World War II by the OSS, a predecessor of the CIA. It’s a collection of techniques to disrupt and destabilize the enemy’s work processes and organisational structures through little acts of sabotage. The full document is obviously declassified and can be downloaded here.

In the section focusing on the interference with “Organizations and Conferences” the following actions are suggested to make meetings as inefficient and unproductive as possible:

1. Insist on doing everything through “channels”. Never permit short-cuts to be taken in order to expedite decisions.
2. Make “speeches”. Talk as frequently as possible and at great length. Illustrate your “point” by long anecdotes and accounts of personal experiences. Never hesitate to make a few “patriotic” comments.
3. When possible, refer all matters to committees, for “further study and consideration”. Attempt to make the committees as large as possible — never less than five.
4. Bring up irrelevant issues as frequently as possible.
5. Haggle over precise wordings of communications, minutes, resolutions.
6. Refer back to matters decided upon at the last meeting and attempt to re-open the question of the advisability of that question.
7. Advocate “caution”. Be “reasonable” and urge your fellow-conferees to be reasonable and avoid haste which might result in embarrassments or difficulties later on.
8. Be worried about the proprietary of any decision — raise the question of whether such action as is contemplated lies within the jurisdiction of the group or whether it might conflict with the policy of some higher echelon.

Wait. That sounds like…

I know. Right?

Does that mean…?

No, of course not.

But still: How is it that this sounds so damn familiar and present?