The Prussian military analyst Carl von Clausewitz is credited with coining the phrase “the fog of war” in his posthumous classic, On War (1832). An English translation was first published in 1873. He observed, “War is the realm of uncertainty; three quarters of the factors on which action in war is based are wrapped in a fog of greater or lesser uncertainty. A sensitive and discriminating judgment is called for; a skilled intelligence to scent out the truth.”

A German military strategist, Helmuth von Moltke, later asserted, “No battle plan survives contact with the enemy”

Long before them, a Yiddish proverb suggests that “man plans and them God laughs.”

Thomas Watson Sr. observed, “Plan the work and then work the plan.” Several sources (including Sun Tzu and Peter Drucker) are credited with suggesting that “failing to plan is planning to fail.”

I mention all this by way of positioning another phrase, “the fog of business,” origin unknown.

In essence, business information becomes business intelligence once it is evaluated. I agree with von Clausewitz about the importance of “sensitive and discriminating judgment” and “skilled intelligence.”

Be they BIG or small, data must by validated and in sufficient quantity so that the best possible (key word) can decisions are made.

The metaphor “fog” refers both to what is known and to what is assumed to be known…but isn’t.

[In this context, I am again reminded of an observation by Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain): “It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.”]

What should business leaders do? Here’s a four-step process.

1. Determine what needs to be known about a given situation or issue(s).
2. Determine the nature and extent of what is as yet unknown. (See Twain comment.)
3. Identify where this information is available.
4. Obtain, evaluate, and then assimilate the data with what is already known.

Here’s a winning combination: Convert “the fog of business” into a “cloud” of more and much better data than what you and your competition have now.