The Inspirational Value of Analogy in Business

As a modern occupation, business management tries to establish links with other, more traditional domains of life, where acceptable conventional wisdom is available to inform the target audience. When it comes to communicating and transferring theoretical knowledge, especially for abstract or new content, nothing works better than analogies. There are two frequently referenced sources of inspiration: sports and military.

A significant portion of the business vocabulary has been imported from the world of sports. It is an easy construct, given the competitive nature of the two environments, as well as the wide resonance of such examples with most people, based on the popularity of sports.

For illustration, there are some sound similarities:

• Accomplishments are typically the result of team effort.
• Extensive practice is the mother of success (Malcolm Gladwell – Outliers – empirical findings placed the threshold at approx. 10,000 hrs – about 10 years)
• Results are measurable in increments – score in sports; Balance Score Cards, Key Performance Indicators, or simply $ in business

However, by constructing a frame of reference in the sports arena, many times we distort substantially the reality of the business context. Hence, for every comparable trait, there is a dissonant aspect. Here are some typical examples:

• Objectives
• In sports - the focus object is one ball or puck
• In business - there are multiple, simultaneous objectives
• Purpose
• The purpose of competition is to test the limits or to win a game, with some entertainment value
• Most of the time, business success is a survival mechanism
• Rules
• In sports - rules are significantly more rigid and well defined
• Due to the number of variables at play, the business playing field is a lot more complex
• Drivers for success
• The individual talent is the main ingredient of sport team’s success
• In business - too much emphasis on the individual merits may be a deterrent for collective accomplishment, while collaboration is the catalyst for success
• Ability to intervene and apply corrections
• In sports - there is a referee on the ground, who intervenes and stops the game every time there is a fault play
• In business - the real judge is the marketplace, and the reaction is delayed
• Last, but not least relevant, members of a business entity (with the exception of glorified CEO-s) are paid for their performance much less than the star athletes whose stories are used to inspire organizational behavior.

A second remarkable parallel - that got immense attention and interest in business circles - was triggered by the rediscovery of “The Art of War” – brilliantly articulated by Sun Tzu, around 500 bc. Words like strategy, tactics, targets, officers, soldiers, strengths, weaknesses and winning have received a new dimension when extrapolated in the context of a business entity. It is undeniable that this learning is valuable, primarily in times of crises and tensed circumstances. However, the business reality is not always analogous to war, and the daily routine rarely compares with the strains of a military campaign.

Without diminishing the inspirational value of the two previous frames of reference, I find increasing relevance in the world of music played in concert halls, a field that could be equally vibrant, but resorting to means of expression that are significantly different from the energy and sacrifice found in the athletic arenas or battle trenches. Therefore I began to see the nature and purpose of a functioning organization more like an orchestra, rather than as a sports team, or an army of generals and soldiers.

We don’t need to look through special lenses to find the obvious resemblance. The immediate source of information would be a simple on-line research, where Wikipedia defines it for us, in fairly adequate language:

• An orchestra is a large instrumental ensemble that contains various sections of strings, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments.
• Orchestras are usually led by a conductor who directs the performance… unifies the interpretation across various sections, sets the tempo and shapes the sound of the ensemble.
• Members play different instruments – with remarkable skills and abilities – but the collective goal is harmony not individual prominence.

Let’s proceed now by slightly changing just few words, with their equivalent in an organizational setting.  You’ll be amazed how business-suitable this is.

• A business unit is a large resource center that contains various departments of technical, commercial, production and administrative functions.
• Business Units are usually led by a Manager who directs the activity… unifies the execution across various departments, sets the objectives and shapes the output of the ensemble.
• Members play different roles – with remarkable skills and abilities – but the collective goal is organizational success not individual prominence.

 

I can certainly use this view, and be perfectly in tune with the image it portrays for my corporate target audience. So let’s continue to play this chord and delve into the role of management in this context. There are valuable lessons to be learned from the work of a conductor, as my next blog will suggest…