8 management lessons from ‘Ocean’s Thirteen’

Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much. — Helen Keller

Behind every able man there are always other able men. — ancient Chinese proverb

One of the newest films out of Hollywood is Ocean’s Thirteen, which I recently saw at a premiere in Glorietta 4, Makati. The movie stars George Clooney, Al Pacino, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, and the Mandarin-speaking Shaobo Qin as Yen. I believe all business people, leaders and others interested in management (or the pitfalls of mismanagement!) should watch it.

The plot is actually quite simple. Danny Ocean (played by George Clooney) and his gang plot their biggest and riskiest casino heist ever to avenge their mentor and colleague Reuben Tiskoff (Elliot Gould), who was cheated out of his 50-percent share in the Midas Casino Hotel (renamed “The Bank”) by greedy casino hotel mogul Willy Bank (Al Pacino). This tragedy sends Reuben into critical condition at the hospital ICU. Ocean’s gang members plan to sabotage The Bank’s grand opening festivities on two fronts — by making nearly all gamblers win big against the house on opening night, and by stealthily depriving Bank of his coveted Royal Review Board’s Five Diamond Awards for his hotel.

Here are eight management lessons from the film:

• Don’t cheat business partners. You can out-negotiate legitimately and aboveboard, but once you’ve struck a final agreement with partners — such as Willy Bank did with Reuben Tiskoff, who provided him prime land for a new casino-hotel joint venture for 50 percent of the shares — don’t cheat! It is not only illegal, it is immoral and will eventually redound to no good. What does it profit a person if he or she gains the whole business by cheating, but loses peace of mind, priceless honor, self-respect and business reputation in the long-term?

• Don’t give business partners or others the opportunity to cheat you! Sorry to those who have sadly been victims of cheating, whether in business or in the recent national mid-term election, but I believe that it is also a high crime to allow others the opportunity to cheat you! In this film, why was con artist Reuben so trusting of others? Why didn’t he vigorously resist every step of the way instead of just meekly signing away his rightful 50-percent ownership of the casino hotel without a bruising legal fight or without demanding fair compensation? Don’t forget, there will be less cheaters in this world if there are less people providing those vile crooks the opportunities to cheat!

• Don’t do business based on ego and emotions. Despite his ruthlessness and obvious business genius, the seeds of Willy Bank’s destruction were his ego and his allowing emotions to mess up his erstwhile sharp analytical prowess. For instance, when the black American con artist offers his services for the new casino and Bank rejects him outright based on gut instinct, Bank then makes the mistake of reversing his cool decision when his ego is challenged by a rival casino-hotel tycoon. There are other examples in the movie of how the suspension of cool, unemotional analyses due to ego and emotions — such as Bank’s penchant for luxuries like a state-of-the-art South Korean cell phone — bring him to catastrophic perdition.

• Don’t sell your soul to the devil (but if you do, never trust him!). Danny Ocean is right when he is skeptical of a friend’s suggestion to seek financial support from sly casino-hotel owner Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) for their high-stakes casino heist, but I salute Ocean for not totally trusting Benedict in the end, as can be seen in one of the final scenes of the film.

• Don’t over-depend on only one assistant or lieutenant (she or he is only human, not Wonder Woman or Superman). Watch out for Willy Bank’s mayordoma-like lady executive Abigail Sponder (Ellen Barkin), who brings the tycoon’s most prized possessions into peril. The moral of the story? Have more than one key executive or assistant, but be sure to constantly scrutinize and monitor his or her performance yourself. 

• Don’t allow officers or key employees to be bribed or bought by others. This is one of the lessons to be gleaned from the downfall of Willy Bank. Any student of ancient China’s military strategist Sun Tzu and his classic Art of War book will already know this lesson. One of the deadliest ways to destroy one’s competitor or adversary in any war is to get to him by bribing his or her officers, kin or employees.

• Don’t forget the importance of the adage “two heads are better than one.” Ask for ideas from others. One of the strengths of the leadership of Danny Ocean is his willingness and humility to solicit new ideas, fresh strategies and even contrary opinions from his gang members. No genius or leader on earth, I believe, has a monopoly on all the bright ideas, effective strategies and common sense in this vast universe.

• Don’t forget Murphy’s Law, so after doing all that is humanly possible, pray. In Western culture, there’s a delightful adage called Murphy’s Law, which states that “whatever can go wrong will go wrong, and at the worst possible time.” Incredible wisdom, isn’t it? Just look at Yale and Harvard-educated US President George W. Bush and his Iraq mess. When Willy Bank had already bankrolled nearly everything for his grand hotel inaugural to high-tech perfection — from the entertainment, the world’s finest chefs, the high-roller clientele and VIP guests to the computerized security system, every light and sound and champagne glass — suddenly all hell breaks loose.

How to counteract Murphy’s Law? In whatever endeavor, whether business, professional, political, personal or whatever, I believe we should all work hard, work smart, hope for the best, plan for the worst, and ultimately pray for God’s blessings!

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