Oscar Wilde coined a great phrase in saying that life imitates art far more than art imitates life. What he meant by that is that through art, we appreciate life more. Art is an expression of life, and it helps us better understand ourselves and our surroundings. In business, learning how life imitates art, and even how art imitates life, is an intriguing way to capitalize on the value they both can bring.

When looking at organizations, there is a lot of art and life in how the business is run. Leadership styles range from specific and precise to open and adaptable. Often this is based on a managers own personal life experience. An example on the art side of the equation is machine learning. Its something we have created as an expression of what it means to be human. Both have common benefits that have the capability to propel the business forward.

The Art Of Machine Learning

Although its been around for many years, its only been in the past 10 years that machine learning has become more mainstream. In the past, technology used traditional programming, where programmers hard-coded rigid sets of instructions that tried to accommodate every possible scenario. Outputs were predetermined and could not respond to new scenarios without additional coding. Not only does this require continuous updates, costing in lost time and money, but it can also result in outputs that are inaccurate based on problems that the program could not predict.

Computer programming has advanced to where programs are now capable of learning and evolving on their own. With traditional programming, an input was run through a program and created an output. Now, with machine learning, an input is run through a trainable data model, so the output evolves as the model is continually learning and adapting, much in the same way a human brain does.

Take a game of checkers. Using traditional programming, it is unlikely that the computer will ever beat the programmer, who is the trainer of that software. Traditional programming has limited the game to a set of rules based on that programmers knowledge of the game. Whereas with machine learning, the program is based on a self-improving model that is not only able to make decisions for each move, but also evolves the program, learning which moves are most likely to lead to a win.

After several matches, the program will learn from its "experience" in prior matches how to play even better than a human. In the same way humans learn which moves to take and which to avoid, the program also keeps track of that information and eventually becomes a better player.

A Different Take On Management Styles

Now lets consider management styles as part of life. In the business world, you typically find two types of managers: those who give explicit instructions that need to be followed in order to accomplish a goal, and those who provide the goal without detailed instructions, but offer guidance and counseling as needed to get there.

In the first scenario, the worker needs only to apply the instructions received to get the work done, which makes the manager happy with the result, similar to traditional programming. But the results are limited and dont take into account unexpected variables and changes that happen as a part of the business. In this micromanagement style, the worker often has to go back to the manager for additional instructions, costing both time and money, similar to traditional programming.

In the second scenario, the worker is expected to find their own path to achieving the goal by learning, trying and testing different options. From that experience, the worker modifies their process based on the results of their efforts, much like machine learning. The process is much more flexible and accommodating as its able to be adjusted easily, on the fly. Like machine learning, this strategic style of management provides flexibility and autonomy, saving time and producing much better results.

Leverage Common Benefits For Optimal Results

Both machine learning and strategic management styles have some common benefits, if done well. One benefit is scalability. Its nearly impossible to scale an organization with a micromanagement style. As the company grows, managers will have increasingly less time to spend with workers. The same is true of traditional programming. Unless the program can learn and change on its own, it will never be able to scale to keep pace with the business.

Another common benefit is the ability to outsmart the competition. Companies that embrace machine learnings intelligent algorithms and better analytical power will have a leg up on those organizations that do not. They can take advantage of the automated learning capabilities built into machine learning. In the same way, those companies that take advantage of a strategic management style over micromanaging will enable workers to be self-sufficient and contribute the full power of their wisdom.

Oscar Wilde was surprisingly prophetic when he talked about life imitating art. The best organizations are those that leverage the commonalities both life and art; of machine learning and strategic management styles. As life can be fuller by imitating art, art and life together help organizations realize their greatest potential.

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Management Styles And Machine Learning: A Case Of Life Imitating Art - Forbes