** Muhammad Al-Mohammadi Al-Madhi
Some may wonder when they know that the approach of the Messenger – may God bless him and grant him peace – was based on all the pillars and elements of the innovative leadership style that supports and encourages innovation at its highest levels, in all aspects of his administration, may God bless him and grant him peace.
Perhaps one of the greatest aspects of his unique genius leadership personality is that he was able simply and easily to unleash the creative and innovative energies of his companions at different abilities and levels, and made each of them work his mind and thought to serve the idea in which he believed, with the highest levels of individual and organizational efficiency and effectiveness.
He made each of them a distinguished leader in his field, feeling the highest degree of responsibility, immersing himself in the work of his idea with all his being and conscience, participating, creating, and taking the initiative to present his ideas and opinion without waiting for him to be asked.
Perhaps this is one of the highest degrees of the innovative leadership style whose signs have appeared in several situations, the most famous of which is the day of Badr, and the initiative of Al-Hubaab bin Al-Mundhir to suggest a place for the landing of the Islamic army other than the place ordered by the Messenger – may God’s blessings and peace be upon him – a position that indicated the extent of his sense of responsibility Participation, initiative, and realization of his thought and reason in the geography of the place as if he were the commander-in-chief of the army, and not just an ordinary soldier.
Perhaps I do not go beyond the truth when I declare that the Messenger – may God’s blessings and peace be upon him – was able to achieve extraordinary feats with these individuals – ordinary in their habits, character, level of civilization and capabilities, with which they excelled over most of the countries surrounding them with many equipment, munition, organization and civilization, namely the Persians and the Romans, the two great countries at that time, and this is what I rightly consider the criterion for the success of any leader.
The battle of al-ahzaab is a model
Although his biography is full of manifestations of an inventive style; I will content myself with referring to only one position, which is the conquest of the parties, trying to delve into some aspects of his innovative and creative administration – may God bless him and grant him peace, which were represented in the following:
1. Managing the knowledge and information aspect:
As it appears from the context of the biography of this battle that information has reached the Messenger – may God’s blessings and peace be upon him- that the Jews are plotting to incite the polytheists and partisan them against the Muslims in a large number that they cannot handle, and that this information that the Messenger – may God’s blessings and peace be upon him – got was Accurate and timely, and perhaps this is what made it valuable in taking the decision to face the next danger.
Moreover, what is more important than the arrival of information is the good use of it, its dissemination and spread so that all employees of the organization know it so that they all have the same level of knowledge as their leadership. Therefore, the Messenger – may God’s blessings and peace be upon him – initiated an urgent consultative session of the kind that is now called “brainstorming”; Where he mentioned this information to all Muslims and told them about the nature of the upcoming danger and the extent of the problem they would be exposed to, and asked them to share their opinion and thought to address that.
Perhaps this carries with it the most specific characteristics of consultative knowledge management that seeks to manage the minds and thought of those with it, not just their bodies, and explode their creative and innovative energies by making them feel responsible and immerse themselves in participation and work; and that was the case.
2. Innovative idea:
Innovation is defined in its simplest sense as finding a new, unfamiliar way to achieve the same goal.
This is what actually happened in that creative climate that the Messenger – may God bless him and grant him peace – created for his companions.
No sooner had the ideas sparked their trigger than an idea arose for one of his obscure companions at the time, who had hardly been liberated from slavery until that crisis appeared, and he is Salman al-Farisi – may God be pleased with him – so he immersed himself with all his conscience and his being, mind, thought and feeling in that climate in which the ordinary individual turns into a participant and initiator Extraordinarily creative and innovative.
His innovative idea – which was unfamiliar to Arabs at the time – was to dig a trench in the part that could be stormed into the Madinah, which is between two high laps, which indicates the extent of Salman’s – may God be pleased with him – preoccupation with responsible thinking that is based on study and knowledge of the geography of the site, His mind and thought to solve the problem, as if he is the supreme leader and the one responsible for solving it.
What a successful and correct idea that turned the scales, turned the weakness of the Muslims into strength, and the strength of the polytheists into weakness, and formed a strategic surprise for them that they did not reckon with, and turned their plans and planning upside down, and put them in a position of defense instead of attack, and lost them the advantage of the number and kit that they enjoyed.
3. Seize the opportunity and make good use of the creative energies of individuals:
Through the inspiring and innovative idea of Salman al-Farisi, may God be pleased with him, the Muslims were able to stop and limit the threat of the polytheists, but the threat of the Jews remained and they were the ones who sided with these polytheists in the first place, and their homes are located at the back of the Muslims by whom they can be exposed, even if they allow the polytheists to enter the Madinah before them – And it is the only side left for that – because Muslims have become in the most embarrassing situation possible, despite the covenants and pledges between Muslims and Jews not to allow any of them to be invaded by the other, but the Messenger – may God’s blessings and peace be upon him – knows that there is no covenant or dhimma for the Jews; They are the killers of the prophets, the Most High said: “Is it not [true] that every time they took a covenant a party of them threw it away? But, [in fact], most of them do not believe.” Only an illusionist trusts the Jews. Yet he did not base his decision on guesswork, but made sure they were betrayed by a delegation sent them to feel their pulse, explore their position, assure him of their betrayal, bragging and immoralities.
And here was the most critical situation in this crisis, but by the grace of God Almighty, a great opportunity arose, which was the conversion of one of the polytheists from Ghatfan, who was called Nu’aim bin Masoud, who came to the Messenger of God – may God’s blessings and peace be upon him – to declare his conversion to Islam and put himself at his disposal and leadership.
The Messenger, may God’s blessings and peace be upon him, with wisdom and geniality of his leadership, his good behavior and employment of the creative and innovative energies of a person who had hardly declared his conversion to Islam – was to put his trust in him, and direct him to carry out a mental task in which he leaves the freedom of action and enables him to perform it as he sees fit, and the goal is as The Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, directed him not to announce his conversion to Islam. He is in the Muslims an individual who will not add anything if he joins their declared ranks, but rather he must abandon them pretentiously, for war is a deception or as he, may God’s blessings and peace be upon him, said to him, and here you see how the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, managed the matter from his intellectual and creative side, where Nu’aym Bin Masoud set out, as it is known in the biography, and developed an elaborate plan to spoil the “alliance” relationship between the Jews and the polytheists and sow seeds of doubt and division among them so that their contract and oath would be broken, and their plot and plan would fail and their gathering would return without causing any harm to the Muslims, all without using a single arrow or shedding of blood. Rather, it is through the realization of thought and the use of the mind in the highest degree of effectiveness
A cursed oath and a smart trick!
Nua’ym mentioned to the Jews – as he was keen on them and an ally for them – that the polytheists would leave and abandon them alone for Muhammad to be alone with them and take revenge on them for what they did, so they asked him for advice; He said: Ask them for hostages from their sons.. If they do, they are honest. Otherwise, they intend to betray you, so beware of them and do not allow them to enter the Madinah from your side.
Then he turned to the polytheists and said to them, as one of them: The Jews have regretted their action and feared the revenge of Muhammad and wanted to reconcile with him and secure themselves and prove their sincerity to him, by taking the best of your sons and offering them to him as a ransom for what they did. The polytheists were astonished, but he said: Examine them by allowing you to enter the Madinah from their side and you will see, and indeed the polytheists found what Nu’aym had said is truth when they asked the Jews to do so, but they immediately refused. So, the damn alliance broke with this ingenious clever trick.
The most serious obstacle in this conquest was eliminated by the effort of an ordinary individual who was employed as best as a leader could employ one of his members to achieve the highest degree of creativity in his performance.
4. Getting to know the facts of things:
The Messenger of God – may God’s blessings and peace be upon him – was not satisfied by merely guessing what the polytheists might take after that, whether they should leave or continue the siege, or attack in one way or another, and even stand on the facts of their matter and know their decision in order to build his position on certainty.. He wanted to send those who will bring him their news by going to them and mixing with them as if he were one of them and reaching their leaders, and knowing what they were thinking without anyone feeling it, then he would return to tell the Messenger, may God’s blessings and peace be upon him, and this was later narrated by Hudhayfa bin Al-Yaman – may God be pleased with him – to one of the young Muslims after the death of The Messenger, may God’s blessings and peace be upon him, when the Messenger, may God’s blessings and peace be upon him, delegated someone for this task, but out of fear of cold, danger, hunger, fear, and prolonged siege, no one answered. Until he identified Hudhayfa bin Al-Yaman, so he got up and went among the polytheists, and as he said, I sat among a group of them in which Abu Sufyan was in it, and it was very cold, so Abu Sufyan said to them: each of you should get to know who is with him, so Hudhaifah started around him and asked who you are, so they answered him and did not ask him, and that was from him smart behavior and quick intuition, then Abu Sufyan started talking about the difficulty of the situation of the polytheists and the exhaustion of their supplies and what the wind, storms and cold had done to them, and that they had no choice but to leave in the morning, then he came back and told the Messenger, may God’s blessings and peace be upon him, to determine the facts of the matter, and determine the next step knowingly, and always bases his decisions on certain and true knowledge, all through human means and methods of ordinary individuals and not by miraculous or supernatural means that humans are unable to do.
This is the basis for example and model for every leader in any position in order to run as the Messenger, may God’s blessings and peace be upon him, used to administer, to unleash the creative and innovative energies in performance, and to implement thought before action, and reason before muscle.
