While today’s article is a fun mashup of the most popular show on television and parallels to the world of business, we do have to be respectful of those who are not caught up on the current season of Game of Thrones: so, proceed with caution, as there are spoilers below!
With its fantastical elements, political scheming, deep characters, and heartbreaking moments, “Game of Thrones” has become a cultural phenomenon. What began as a long-running novel series 23 years ago has sparked yet another example of television’s vaunted “Golden Age.” Today’s article develops a fun Future of Work parallel to what is sure to be considered one of the greatest television shows of all time. What does “Game of Thrones” tell us about the Future of Work?
- Alliances and partnerships are what drove the successful vanquishing of the Army of the Dead; business collaboration is how the modern organization succeeds. One of the (many) political subplots of the show entails various houses/families vying for power and control. During Seasons 7 and 8, many of those houses joined together in alliance to conquer a threat (the Night King and his White Walker/wight (“zombie”) army) that threatened to doom mankind. In discussing the Future of Work, there is an overarching notion at stake: optimizing work in such a way that the greater business can not just survive, but thrive, in the months and years ahead. Just as the Mother of Dragons (Daenerys Targarayen) united various armies, not to mention Jon Snow and his family at Winterfell (who himself rallied the Wildlings for his cause), procurement and HR must align themselves in the name of work optimization (blending talent- and spend-led strategies, integrating core contingent workforce and human capital management systems, etc.).
- Cersei’s stubborn loyalty to the centuries-long way of ruling Westeros = executives holding onto antiquated processes and thinking. Cersei Lannister (who was queen of Westeros until this past episode) had long ruled the Seven Kingdoms with fear-based tactics, even going so far as to burn (using a fictional concoction called “wildfire”) the Great Sept of Baelor in an act to destroy her enemies (and, unfortunately, hordes of innocent victims). This represents a tired and antiquated way of thinking that is reflected in how some business leaders refuse to buy into Future of Work-era strategies and innovations, choosing to sacrifice employee engagement and the overall talent experience. The new State of Contingent Workforce Management research study found that 72% of businesses believe that embracing all workers and services as true partners is a critical means for optimizing how work is done; this type of transformational thinking is a far cry from the olden days of viewing certain types of talent as merely augmentative, rather than a crucial component of work optimization.
- Jon Snow’s true lineage may be a detriment to specific characters (i.e. Dany), however, this vital piece of knowledge wouldn’t have happened without some “data digging.” We, the viewers, knew about the son of Rheagar Targarayen and Lyanna Stark via a Bran (also known as the Three-Eyed Raven) vision back in Season 7, however, it was Samwell Tarly’s dedication to digging through “data” (books) at the Citadel that this nugget of information was discovered. Likewise, we are living in an age of intelligence, which is incredibly critical to any future state of work. Predictive analytics, machine learning-led algorithms for enhanced talent-matching, and the utilization of core enterprise talent and project data to spark better business outcomes are all incredibly valuable extensions of the power of intelligence, proving that the Future of Work runs on data. (“A mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge,” as written in the George R. R. Martin novel series that the show is based on.)
- The power of dragons represents the power of technology (as was highlighted in our previous “Game of Thrones”/business mashup). Dany may be down to a lone dragon after “birthing” three towards the beginning of the series (thanks to the Night King’s ice javelin and Greyjoy pirate Euron’s scorpion crossbow marksmanship), but one dragon is still better than none, an apt reflection of optimizing how work is done requires innovation and new technology. In the series, dragons are considered mythical creatures and presumably the power behind Dany’s ultimate quest for the Iron Throne (and, consequently, the center of the mass destruction in King’s Landing this past week); for some organizations, the idea of automation as front-and-center to business strategy is still foreign. The Future of Work depends on innovation being the relative nexus of ultimate work optimization: interconnected systems, a free-share of data and intelligence, pure process efficiency, etc. Artificial intelligence may seem “mythical” to some organizations, but, in time, it will be what rules the business world.
- The diverse mix of characters on “Game of Thrones” have all contributed to various in-show successes; likewise, diversity is perhaps the best way for today’s businesses to truly thrive in a future state of work and talent. In “The Long Night,” the Army of the Dead was vanquished because the youngest of the Stark children (Arya Stark) leveraged her assassin-like training to sneak up on the Night King. Tormund Giantsbane and his band of Wildlings were critical factors in Season 6’s critical battle at Winterfell. Daenerys herself spent the bulk of the series (the first six seasons) on a different continent but is now arguably the center of the show’s ultimate endgame. Tyrion Lannister was the oft-overlooked member of his house, yet his transformative political mind has shaped dozens of the show’s events. Diversity is a key element of the Future of Work; Ardent’s research has discovered that 75% of Best-in-Class businesses are emphasizing diversity and inclusion in how they engage talent, address critical enterprise projects, and ultimately determine how work is done.
The key elements of the Future of Work, such as innovation, the agile workforce, and transformational enterprise thinking, will push businesses into a new era that promotes agility, as well as enabling better alignment with the dynamic shifts in the business world. “Game of Thrones” may serve as an excellent source of entertainment (and consequently go down in history as one of the all-time great television series), but there are plenty of lessons to be learned from the show in regards to how we as businesses can continue to answer that all-important question: “How does work get done?”
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