Lessons from a Warzone

Louai Al Roumani was head of finance and planning at Banque Bemo Saudi Fransi (BBSF), a privately owned retail bank in Syria, when the war broke out in 2011. Over the next few years he would find himself leading the finance, strategy and operations of one of the largest companies in the country in the midst of a crisis like no other. Part-memoir, part strategic business advice, Lessons from a Warzone draws on the lessons Louai learned over the next four years steering the bank through unbelievably difficult times and proposes ten hard-learned lessons applicable to any leader or manager in the midst of a crisis.

Some of these include:Lesson #1: Draw the line right from the start - how to define your risk, values and ethics. Lesson #2: Transform your concept of time - think like a three-generation family business does. Lesson #3: Don't overplan: how we prepared for ISIS but instead got overwhelmed by a snowstorm.