The 1976 American political thriller film All the President's Men, directed by Alan J. Pakula, describes the secret wiretapping in the headquarters of political opponents and is based on the 1974 book of the same name by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, two journalists who exposed the Watergate scandal to the Washington Post.
Here in Serbia, the use of secret services in dealing with political opponents does not cause scandals, it is even taken for granted. That is why it is important in Serbia to have trustworthy people at the head of the security services, regardless of their competence. President Vučić made a checkerboard of his trusted people, Alexander Vulin i Bratislava Gašića in the positions of BIA Director and Minister of the Interior, which is not surprising.
The list of Vučić's people is long and it is noticeable that it is formed on the basis of the rules described in the concept "Genghis Khan School of Management". By studying the principles and actions of Genghis Khan, one of the most successful leaders in history, modern management theory has defined the basic rules that the great Khan followed in creating his empire. It is obvious that these principles and procedures are applied in Vučić's Serbia.
And what are the principles and actions of Genghis Khan?
- Loyalty above all else - Only those who are unconditionally loyal can become the closest collaborators, and their competences and qualities are not so important. Loyalty is mutual, so everything is tolerated for loyal associates.
Vučić's closest associates are absolutely loyal to him, but it is hard to imagine that any of them could replace him and threaten his leadership position. Try to imagine Marko Đurić or Ana Brnabić coming out to Vučić's party and fighting with him for a leadership position in the party, and therefore in the country. Furthermore, and in accordance with this principle, Vučić protects his loyal associates: Gašić, "complete idiots" whoever they are, Simonović, Babić, Jutko and the like. From this it can be concluded how all current and future affairs will end.
- Use knowledge – Expertise is very important, but it needs to be paid for, and such associates cannot be in the inner circle so as not to threaten the leadership position.
There are numerous examples of foreign consultants (some with bad references, such as Tony Blair), but more interesting here are associates who were part of the system due to their expertise, and were replaced. Let's list only the ministers: Vujović, Verbić and Radulović.
- Allow subordinates to retain their political and religious beliefs as long as they are loyal to you.
Vučić allows his loyal coalition partners (SVM, LDP, SPO, LSV and the Sandžak parties) to publicly represent their political ideas, even though they sometimes contradict his beliefs.
- Be uncompromising towards opponents - disloyal ones.
Vučić's rhetoric towards political opponents contains qualifications such as: scum, social dregs, traitor and the like. This often harsh rhetoric is taken over by the media, which is under the control of the government, and some spokesmen, who then deal with dissenters on a daily basis. There are cases of physical attacks on dissenters, although the impression is that these are just excesses.
- Meritocracy - quantify whenever possible.
By excessive use of statistics, indicators and numbers, Vučić shows that he fully follows the concept of "Genghis Khan School of Management". Insisting on different data sometimes makes no sense other than showing "competence" to your followers. On the other hand, it is irritating to hear about the successes of an economic tiger every day, while living in today's Serbia.
- "Divine support" – act with the belief that there is a "higher" purpose.
The "higher goal" of the Vučić regime is the survival of Aleksandar Vučić in power, because only he can ensure: peace, stability, economic progress and the defense of the territories of the "Serbian world". In order to fulfill these contradictory goals, different patrons and allies are chosen, as necessary.
- Asceticism and modesty – to be moderate and self-sacrificing above all.
Vučić exaggerates in emphasizing his moderation, modesty, work habits, renunciation of everything and anything. It seems forced, artificial and self-congratulatory. By the way, it often happens that he doesn't fully immerse himself in the role, so he sneaks out: "For the first time in history..." - which doesn't seem modest at all.
According to the presented application of the principles, it is certain that Aleksandar Vučić applies the "Genghis Khan School of Management" leadership manual. When applying, the measure of things is very important, that is, it is possible for errors to occur due to exaggeration and contradictions. The difference is that the illiterate Temujin (Genghis Khan) came to these principles spontaneously, through practice, balancing in an imaginary triangle between corruption and paranoia, the struggle for power and constant socio-historical changes that affected his plans. We will see how the Serbian Genghis will cope with the upcoming socio-historical changes.
The author is a full professor at the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management of the Faculty of Technical Sciences in Novi Sad, where he teaches the courses Financial Markets, Corporate Finance, Money and Banking and Algorithmic Trading
