Fuhrer-Wenger strategy

Column Cohorts of communication consultants
tell their customers: Set the topics yourselves! Don't let yourselves be
on the defensive! If you have to react, you're always in a bad position, but the reverse is also true.
Sometimes it's like a shoe. In the case of the quarrelling Zurich
Government Councillors Dorothee Fierz and Rita Fuhrer applied the laws
of the Mikado game: whoever moves first loses. Mrs. Fierz pressed
in the NZZ am Sonntag when, out of the blue
made the previously barely noticed jurisdictional battles public.
It was remarkable how Rita Fuhrer reacted. She remained silent.
She remained out of reach for comments. She simply disappeared!

I suspect Rita Fuhrer was sitting comfortably under an apple tree
and quietly read one of the most important survival books for
politicians. It was written by the Zurich sinologist Harro von
Senger, is a compendium of ancient Chinese war lists and is called
"Stratagems - life and survival lists from three millennia". Since
for example, there is the wonderful bait stratagem no. 17: "A
Throw down a brick to get a jade stone". Or the
Politician strategy no. 15: "Luring the tiger from the mountain to the plain".
In other words: tempting the opponent to move into unfamiliar territory.
to move. Politicians strategize because they are always ready (or
forced) to talk about things they don't understand.
Or, in this case extremely fitting: "Behind the smile the dagger
hide" (Strategem No. 10).

Of course, Ms. Fuhrer has not remained inactive. Already in the
Cantonal Council meeting on Monday, the traditional political platform and
news exchange, swarmed their auxiliary troops from administration and
Group and spread the "correct" version. Ms. Fierz, on the other hand
left it at her shot from the pulpit on Sundays. It
it can be assumed that it was a shot from the hip and
no considered infantry attack with artillery support
and air screen. The fact that Dorothee Fierz remained alone with her problem
(or was left alone) was less a question of information
as one of the tactics - and presumably a problem of loyalty of their
own troops in the administration and party. Either it has a
spectacular solo effort or their own people have dared to
deliberately let them run into the knife in time for the elections.
to get rid of it. For more details, see stratagem no. 20: "Turbidify the water to get rid of the
To pack fish".

Offensive and proactive information is all right, provided that the
own position is objectively consolidated and politically strengthened by loyal and
active auxiliaries if there is any opposition (and thus
is always to be expected, especially in politics). It almost seems
it was as if Rita Fuhrer had caught her opponent with Strategem 28:
"Lure onto the roof and then pull the ladder away".

As a cunning and particularly effective stratagem in the event of a
unexpected public attack proves its worth - as the present
Case in point - the calculated silence. By not saying anything
the main reason for this was the surprise effect.
The force of the attack is weakened. By allowing time between the attack and
the reaction, she has given herself the breath to realize her own
communicate focal points instead of reacting reflexively to the
having to react to attacks. And instead of reacting herself, she
others - especially the majority of their government colleagues - react
let. Another stratagem, this time number 3: "With the
Kill someone else's weapon!"

An interesting variation on this strategy of silence has been developed by
by the way, Nelly Wenger demonstrated in the same week that the
attack by Philippe Gaydoul, a combination of advertisements and interviews, in
Cailler chocolate had surprised her. She has also joined the
pressure from the hectic media and did not react reflexively,
which only prolongs the controversy and is
Operating temperature wins. Ms. Wenger also had the nerve to
duck away and keep quiet for a week, only to then have their own
agenda. This allowed her to respond to accusations that
had not been collected at all and free marketing messages from
Nestlé, because the main accusation - increased prices after
packaging change - fell by the wayside.

Anyone who masters all this so cold-bloodedly can follow another old advice
follow: Sit on the bank of the river and wait until the corpses
of your enemies. That may be Indian, but it's not
bad...

Karl Lüönd is a freelance publicist.
More about Harro von Senger and the Strategeme: www.36strategeme.ch