Episode 65: Ben Ford, Founder of Commando Development, on the OODA Loop and Tech Leadership

Ben Ford is the founder of Commando Development, a firm which leverages his deep background and experience in enterprise IT as well as his years in service as a Royal Marine to the benefit of technology teams in startups and large enterprises. In this OODAcast we discuss Ben's views on the history of Commando's, from the experiences that inspired Winston Churchill prior to his forming then in World War II up to today, capturing a surprising number of lessons for business and IT leaders today. Some discussion topics: How can Winston Churchill's decisions regarding Commando Unit reporting structure inform your decision on how your enterprise AI initiatives or cybersecurity actions are organized and led? How can the metrics of legendary Commando (and trainer of OSS) William Fairbairn inform the metrics of enterprise cybersecurity? We also examine Ben's use of the OODA Loop approach in his methodologies. He calls the OODA Loop the Algorithm of Adaptation, considering it the best mental model for thinking about how we shape and are shaped by our environments. Additional Resources: Commando Dev Algorithms of Leadership