FOI says 1944 sabotage manual tactics persist in modern bur…

FOI says 1944 sabotage manual tactics persist in modern bureaucracy

A Swedish Defence Research Agency memo reveals that modern bureaucratic practices unintentionally mirror sabotage tactics from a 1944 US wartime manual designed to slow decision-making. FOI recommends resolving unclear orders through direct communication rather than email to counter these hidden inefficiencies.

Daniel TrangeledSWEDEN02 Oct 2026Original Source

The Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI) has published a memo arguing that organisations today repeat tactics from a 1944 US sabotage manual without meaning to. It points to bureaucracy, long decision chains and risk aversion.

The memo draws on the Simple Sabotage Field Manual, which the US Office of Strategic Services issued during the Second World War. The publication builds on lectures given by the Swedish Armed Forces' cyber team Pergite at the FMTIS leadership days.

— The manual is still relevant today, above all because it shows that we can slow down an organisation unknowingly and with simple means. That happens through excessive bureaucracy, long decision chains, meetings, risk aversion and a focus on processes over results, author Johan Nordström wrote on LinkedIn.

The manual advises saboteurs to send issues to committees of at least five people. The memo notes that individuals contribute less in large groups. It also cites a Standish Group study of 20,000 software projects. That study found the ability to make quick decisions was the single most important factor for success.

Requiring three approvals where one would do creates bottlenecks, the memo says. It also singles out reporting in the Armed Forces.

— In an Armed Forces context, follow-up and evaluation have sometimes been likened to watermelons: green on the outside but red inside. A project's status "improves" and is reported as on schedule as it moves up the hierarchy, even though the project has reported delays or problems, the memo says.

FOI recommends sorting out unclear orders face to face, or by phone or video, rather than by email.

Common questions about the article

Questions and answers generated automatically from the article content.

01What does the FOI memo say about the 1944 Simple Sabotage Field Manual's relevance today?

The FOI memo argues that modern organisations unintentionally repeat tactics from the 1944 US Office of Strategic Services' Simple Sabotage Field Manual. It cites bureaucracy, long decision chains and risk aversion as persisting patterns. The memo builds on lectures by the Armed Forces' cyber team Pergite at FMTIS leadership days on 8–10 September. Last fact-checked: 2026-10-02.

02Which bureaucratic tactics from the manual does author Johan Nordström highlight as still disrupting organisations?

03How does FOI suggest organisations avoid the slowdowns described in the sabotage manual?