Hello Internet Marketing Monitor. Today I will be briefly delving into the basic foundation of employee structure with the help of Dungeons & Dragons. That’s right: Dungeons & Dragons. Whether wandering across the dark recesses of Faerun in search of unclaimed treasures or bravely leading a team of white-collar adventures through the strange twists and turns of the internet in hopes of monetary gain, the team concepts of Dungeons and Dragons lie parallel to the solid team foundation that any business needs to rise and survive in the cutthroat grind of e-commerce.

And the key to that team concept is specialized diversity. No adventuring party comprised of six hearty warriors will be able to tackle every problem put forth, no matter how hard they can swing a sword; and, likewise, no business built with a single employee archetype will be able to successfully handle the full range of complications that constantly arise in the workplace.

However, with a simple set-up that consists of at least one healer, one tanker, one bombardier, one balanced member and one scout there is no circumstance that you won’t be able to handle with a level-head. 

In D&D, your healer needs to have a high wisdom, and in business that stat correlates into a thorough understanding of every general aspect of your company. Where as a D&D healer can heal wounds, cast defensive spells, let off offensive attacks and still be at least somewhat efficient with armor, the white-collar healer knows the ins and outs of actually running a business, has a thorough understanding of the primary good or service the company offers and can still dip his hands into the day-to-day dealings when need be. Talented owners, bosses and team leaders are typical examples of a healer.

Regardless of the business you’re trying to run, a tanker is imperative. Simply put, your tanker is the one to absorb the punishment while dishing out a great deal of pain as well. Take the Internet Marketing Monitor for instance: Derick is definitely our tanker (specifically; a level 14, fighter, Dwarf). He’s the one churning out the majority of the content, responding to feedback on a daily basis, and generally manning the central role in our battle tactics. Simply put, you throw a tanker into battle, and let the rest of the team work off the tanker’s lead.

The bombardier may not always seem like the most efficient choice, but you’ll eventually be glad you have one. In D&D, bombardiers are most widely represented by sorcerers and wizards with extremely low hit point values that can do heavy area damage through offensive spells. In the business model, a bombardier would represent an employee who may be just a bit off-kilt from the rest of the team; and, just as the D&D bombardier needs to be heavily protected by the sheer force of the rest of the party, a white-collar bombardier may not be quite as knowledgeable in the actual good or service of the business as the rest of the team. However, all it takes is one delayed fire ball (idea from left-field) to completely jump head and shoulders above the competition. The bombardier is also extremely capable of approaching a stagnate product from a fresh approach.

The balanced member ensures that nothing goes wrong even when it should. A druid, ranger or bard in D&D would fill this role by being able to take on a myriad of tasks, and essentially being whatever the team needs them to be at that exact moment. They are proficient in melee, defense and spell casting, though not extraordinary in any one skill. And just like in D&D, balanced members in the white-collar universe catch on quick and are proficient at just about any task you’d need accomplished. They may not have a direct focus, but their flexibility can save you when things don’t go according to plan.

And this brings us to one of the more over-looked, yet most important aspects of both D&D and e-commerce: the thief (programmer). It’s near impossible to make your way through a game of D&D if you’re continually running into locked doors and being killed by traps. And when you’re running a business online it IS impossible to succeed if the design and functionality of your site is constantly in question. Throughout the majority of your game, or company’s lifespan, your thief may hide in the shadows; but his presence is always felt through the absence of annoyance. If you plan to stay stocked with gold and be able to proceed to the next level in D&D, then you need a good thief. And if you plan on actually making money and being able to maintain despite the constant changes of the internet, then you need a good programmer.

And there you have it. Whether it’s fire-breathing dragons or profit loss, no single monster can stand a chance against a diversified team working towards the same goal.