Editor’s Note: As I wrap up my time as Editor of TLNT — today is my last day — I wanted to share some of my favorite posts from over the years. Here’s one from February 2015.
Mr. Spock has died. He lived long, and prospered.
Of course, Star Trek‘s Mr. Spock, the character, will still be around because fictional people never really go away, but Leonard Nimoy, the wonderful actor who brought Spock to life, will not. He died in February 2015 at age 83.
Trekkies will know this, but in the Star Trek universe, Spock was from the planet Vulcan, a place where a strict adherence to logic had helped Vulcans rise above personal emotions that had once threatened to wipe out their civilization. It also made for a great plot line where Vulcans became the perfect aliens to have “first contact” with the human race (depicted in the film Star Trek: First Contact) in 2063.
OK, I know, I know — what does all this have to do with talent management and HR, anyway?
“You wanted this guy on your side”
Here’s one logical answer: Spock, at least as he was personified by Leonard Nimoy in the original Star Trek TV series and subsequent movies, was just about the perfect manager, and the kind of guy every executive wants as their No. 2.