An international security expert shows how competitive organizations can get-and stay-ahead by
thinking like their adversariesRed teaming. It is a practice as old as the Devil's Advocate
the eleventh-century Vatican official charged with discrediting candidates for sainthood. Today
red teams comprised primarily of fearless skeptics and those assuming the role of saboteurs who
seek to better understand the interests intentions and capabilities of institutions or
potential competitors are used widely in both the public and private sector. Red teaming
including simulations vulnerability probes and alternative analyses helps institutions in
competitive environments to identify vulnerabilities and weaknesses challenge assumptions and
anticipate potential threats ahead of the next special operations raid malicious cyberattack
or corporate merger. But not all red teams are created equal indeed some cause more damage
than they prevent. In Red Team national security expert Micah Zenko provides an in-depth
investigation into the work of red teams revealing the best practices most common pitfalls
and most effective applications of these modern-day Devil's Advocates. The best practices of
red teaming can be applied to the CIA NYPD or a pharmaceutical company and executed
correctly they can yield impressive results: red teams give businesses an edge over their
competition poke holes in vital intelligence estimates and troubleshoot dangerous military
missions long before boots are on the ground. But red teams are only as good as leaders allow
them to be and Zenko shows not only how to create and empower red teams but also what to do
with the information they produce.Essential reading for business leaders and policymakers alike
Red Team will revolutionize the way organizations think about exploit compensate for and
correct their institutional strengths and weaknesses. Drawing on little-known case studies and
unprecedented access to elite red teamers in the United States and abroad Zenko shows how any
group from military units to friendly hackers can win by thinking like the enemy.
