The 4-Layer Structure in History (Part 3)

Review of the previous session

1: History consists not only of a surface-level narrative but also a layer of practical operations.

2: The 3rd and 4th layers are the driving wheels of history.

Now, this time, we will abstract the perspective of this "4-layer structure of history" and "overlay" it onto the surface of other fields.
First, let's abstract the "4-layer structure of history."
・Layer 1/L1: The "Light" of History: Tactics: Consumers of "narratives"
・Layer 2/L2: The "Shadow" of History: Operational Art: Storytellers of "narratives"
・Layer 3/L3: The "Hidden Conductor" of History: Strategy (Military Strategy): Practitioners who run the operations behind the scenes
・Layer 4/L4: The "Corner of the Warehouse" of History: Logistics: "Infrastructure engineers" who support operations from behind the scenes of the behind-the-scenes
This is the "abstracted/generalized '4-layer structure of history'."

Using this as a base, let's apply the simplest model of commercial transactions and for-profit enterprises.
As long as humans gather to form organizations, the OS (4 layers) operating at the foundation is exactly the same, whether in the Pacific War or a modern corporation.

Commercial Transaction and For-Profit Enterprise Model

L1: C (Customer), C to C
→ Consumers.Or transactions between consumers (flea markets, Mercari, Yahoo Auctions, etc.).
Essence: Individual emotions, feelings, and raw consumption.
L2: B to C (Business to Customer)
→ Retail formats involving customer service.Direct marketing is conducted, such as running advertisements to stimulate purchasing desire in C, or "XX Sales," "discount coupons," and "point rewards."
Essence: The projection of "signage," "products," and "images" that an organization launches at individuals. "Marketization of narrative."
L3: B to B (Business to Business)
→ Inter-company transactions of own products. Wholesale. The logic of contracts and accounts receivable/payable.
Essence: Cold transactions between organizations, contracts, profit and loss statements (P/L), foreign currency, and the sector of public processes.
L4: B in B (Business in Business/Intra-organizational Logistics)
→ Internal company transactions (procurement of materials/raw materials, ordering supplies, vehicle management, accounting processing, labor management, general affairs, etc.)
Essence: Internal business flows for organizational maintenance. It is a back-office function and a cost center that does not generate direct profit, but it isindispensablefor maintaining the commercial activities of L2/L3 mentioned above.I felt that B to E had too strong a nuance of employee welfare, so I created the unique term "B in B."

　Be careful about the difference between L3 and L4.When a factory procures raw materials necessary for manufacturing products from an external specialized trading company or wholesaler, the layer viewed from the factory is "L4," but the layer viewed from the specialized trading company is "L3." Raw materials viewed from the factory side cannot generate value "as they are." You "process" the L4 raw materials to turn them into products that can be sold at L3. This is a simple model for creating "high-value-added products." L3 operates for the sake of "objectives (projects)," while L4 operates for the sake of "existence (the organization)" itself.

Next, let's take an example of a modern tech platform company that is not a manufacturer but has become distorted.

L1: Consumers of Narrative ── [General Users / Shareholders]
A layer that unconditionally consumes and blindly believes in the glittering narratives produced by advertisements and old media, such as "Business efficiency with AI!" or "A smart life connected to the world with just a smartphone."

L2: Storytellers of Narrative ── [Management / Evangelists / Sales Representatives / IT Consultants]
A malicious hub that frequently uses jargon learned from Silicon Valley (governance, alliance, synergy, etc.) and plays the role of presenting "future visions" or "ideal estimates" to investors, customers, and the masses. They casually sign incomplete contracts that ignore the constraints of practical work (L3/L4) (infrastructure limits or technical debt).

L3: Practitioners who perform the work ── [Project Managers / On-site Implementation Engineers]
"Logistics officers" on the battlefield who debug bug-ridden specifications in a makeshift manner and force the numbers to balance mathematically and practically against the reckless specifications, deadlines, and requirement definition changes that L2 has signed on their own. Or skilled engineers who actually write the code. The only "adults" in the organization who have the most stomach aches and are exhausting cortisol.

L4: Infrastructure personnel who support the work ── [Data Server Maintenance / Warehouse / Logistics / Annotators]
"Inhabitants of technical infrastructure" who maintain the heat exhaust and electrical systems of physical data centers 24/7/365, or perform the "gritty manual labor" of managing vast amounts of data behind the scenes. They are easily devalued by L1/L2 as "just a cost center," but this is a sanctuary where if even 1 bit hangs up, the entire system stops immediately.

In peacetime, L3 and L4 are often spoken of together as "private logistics." In particular, L3 has become an independent job as "the front line of the field" or "logistics."
As a strict definition of "Logistics," it is independent as "physical logistics" or "distribution," but I believe the role of "infrastructure personnel" goes beyond the scope of "Logistics."
So, how do we verbalize the role of L4's "organizational/social infrastructure maintenance"?
Therefore, I will borrow the phrase"Sustainment". Since "Sustainable" is translated as "Sustainable Development Goals" in the Japanese translation of SDGs, I added "sustainability," but since it is the noun form of Sustain, "maintaining" might be the correct literal translation. However, in the military field, "Sustainment" is defined as "what is necessary to maintain the combat power of a unit," including fields that were traditionally considered "Logistics."
If the purpose of "Logistics" is "the supply of physical supply chains," then "Sustainment" aims for "the maintenance of non-physical infrastructure." Naturally, in this case, "Logistics" becomes a concept included within "Sustainment."
In peacetime terms, it can be said that "Sustainment" isthe "life-support infrastructure of an organization" itself.

Mere "physical supply chains (Logistics)" are just a means.
The essence of "Sustainment" in L4 is the "'will to exist' of the commander, who will survive no matter what happens," which controls [Logistics (dynamic means)] + [defensive armor of finance, law, and hygiene].

The following is a free translation from the U.S. Army manual, ADP 4.0 "Sustainment".
・Functional Areas of Sustainment
The U.S. Army defines Sustainment as "the provision of logistics, personnel services, and health service support necessary to maintain operations until successful mission accomplishment." It is categorized into the following four functional areas.
・・Logistics (Provision of physical infrastructure)
・・Financial and fund management, inter-company contract management
・・Personnel services, labor management, capability development, operational capability assessment, legal management
・・Protection of employees' mental and ethical resilience

What the L4 layer performs is this "Sustainment". It is the provision of resources, capabilities, and systems to maintain an organization. When applied to a general company, this corresponds to the functional area of the "back-office department," particularly the "general affairs department." Financial and fund management is handled by the accounting department or auditing firms, personnel services by the human resources department, legal management by the legal department or corporate lawyers, and employee welfare by the general affairs department, harassment consultation desks, and industrial physicians, each sharing the responsibilities. Furthermore, each department engages in "outsourcing" under the title of "~ consultant." This is similar to the structure in the actual Iraq War, where the U.S. military outsourced logistics on the battlefield to private military companies.

The fourth layer of history is the "social infrastructure layer," which operates 24/7, unseen by the public, and contributes to the maintenance (Sustainment) of society.It is taken for granted that it is running, and it is only exposed to the cold gaze of the public when malfunctions or troubles occur.Such people exist unknown within the spectacular history as "hidden conduits of history." "Learning history" or "learning from history" may not just be about analyzing past successes and failures to draw lessons, but also about knowing what kind of people supported those successes and failures.

Someone you don't know is supporting society and organizations today through the "hidden conduits of history." That is how "everyday life" continues to revolve today.