In philosophy, the golden mean is the desirable middle between two extremes, one of excess and the other of deficiency.
In the business world, managers struggle constantly to achieve the right blend between various extremes. In the present business scenario, where differentiation sought through functional aspects exhaust faster than ever before, it is imperative to find a positioning that is unique, not because of its functional superiority but because of its pre-eminence in terms of fit. The organizations with appropriate strategic fits are the ones which know how to make tradeoffs, where to draw a line. The managers who seek success need to make difficult choices and strike a perfect balance. The inability to strike this balance leads to failure, whether it is of empires, organizations or beings.
The earliest representation of this idea in culture is probably in the mythological Cretan tale of Daedalus and Icarus. Daedalus, a famous artist of his time, built feathered wings for himself and his son so that they might escape the clutches of King Minos. Daedalus warns his son to “fly the middle course”, between the sea spray and the sun’s heat. Icarus did not heed his father; he flew up and up until the sun melted the wax off his wings.
Another early elaboration is the Doric saying carved on the front of the temple at Delphi: “Nothing in Excess”.
The notion of moderation is applicable in all the realms of management. Whether it is the marketers dealing with 4 Ps or the accountants working on the asset- debt structures; or operational decisions of assembly line functions vs. customization or talent retention against layoffs, strategic decisions need to be made and failure at any point can lead to failure of the entire system.
Imperium- 2008 attempts to bring the best management brains of the country through a series of fascinating events calling for acute decision making. Games that call for managers adept at functional areas as well as capable of making right tradeoff across all the realms of management. Ours is a world of choices, risk vs. return, generalization vs. segmentation, generic approach vs. differentiation, time vs. cost, efficiency vs. equity. There are endless choices to be made, myriad decisions to be taken. But the profound wisdom lies in Buddhas middle path- in striking the balance.
Socrates teaches that a man “must know how to choose the mean and avoid the extremes on either side, as far as possible”; while Plato postulates “If we disregard due proportion by giving anything what is too much for it; too much canvas to a boat, too much nutriment to a body, too much authority to a soul, the consequence is always shipwreck.”
For all those who believe that are the true heirs to thrones in the business world, Imperium brings an opportunity to test themselves against most stimulating settings to find if they can reach the Golden mean..
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