Menu
When we think of leadership, we often focus on the what: external characteristics, practices, behavior, and actions that exemplary leaders demonstrate as they take on complex and unprecedented challenges. While this line of thinking is a great place to start, we won’t reach our potential as leaders by looking only at what is visible. We need to […]
As you’re navigating hybrid work, it’s a good moment to assess how your onboarding processes enable or empower your new hires to thrive. Researchers at Microsoft have conducted and identified studies that suggest that onboarding to a new role, team, or company is a key moment for building connections with the new manager and team […]
In a complex, fast-changing world, leadership teams are facing challenges that are bigger than ever while trying to reach goals that are sometimes seemingly at odds. A super leadership team must: Guide the organization’s transformation while ensuring near-term performance. Shift from being a group of individual “superheroes” championing their own domains to putting the enterprise […]
Business is a high-stakes game. The way we approach this game is reflected in the language we use to describe it. Business language is full of expressions borrowed from the military and from sports. Unlike war and sports, however, business is not about winning and losing. Companies can succeed without requiring others to fail. And […]
More than a third of large organizations have some type of transformation program underway at any given time, and many launch one major change initiative after another. Though they kick off with a lot of fanfare, most of these efforts fail to deliver. Only 12% produce lasting results, and that figure hasn’t budged in the […]
For years, the simple answer was that the CFO leads a company’s finance function. But the role has expanded tremendously. Today’s CFO is a key colleague across businesses and functions, and is the CEO’s strategic partner in maximizing value creation. The CFO helps with shaping portfolio strategies, undertaking major investment and financing decisions, and communicating with […]
A chief financial officer (CFO) is the highest-ranking financial professional in an organization and is responsible for the fiscal health of the business. The CFO’s responsibilities include, but aren’t limited to, building a top-notch finance and accounting team, ensuring revenues and expenses stay in balance, overseeing FP&A (financial planning & analysis) functions, making recommendations on mergers and […]
It has been said that success is where preparation and opportunity meet. Never has there been a more opportune time for CFOs to have an impact, with CEOs increasingly looking to them to help shape business direction and strategy. Once considered a numbers-only role, the CFO is now balancing traditional responsibilities with growing demand for […]
Over the last few decades, the role of the CFO has undergone a profound shift. The historical tasks of the finance function such as books and records, financial reporting, and statutory compliance continue to be important but are now taken for granted by CEOs. The CFO of today and tomorrow must be able to take […]
Hiring a chief operating officer is a huge moment and one that requires a lot of thought and planning, particularly for small businesses: A good COO can work wonders for a company, while a misstep in hiring can cost you time, as well as generate a great deal of frustration for everyone involved. As you prepare to start your search, […]
The Chief Operating Officer, or COO, is a C-level executive responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of an organization. The role varies from business to business, but in general, the COO is tasked with ensuring that all departments are working efficiently and effectively towards achieving the company’s goals. One of the primary responsibilities of a COO is […]
COOs are increasingly important to corporations, but what skills will they need to perform at their best? Business leaders weigh in. The COO job description has never been a fixed one: it varies by industry, organization, and need.2 Some COOs may see their role as that of a mentor, whereas others may be partners or heirs […]
Asking the question, “What makes a great COO?” is akin to asking “What makes a great candidate for U.S. vice president?” It all depends on the first name on the ticket—the CEO. New research sheds light on this most contingent, and most mysterious, of C-suite jobs. After in-depth conversations with dozens of executives who have […]
Traditional advice for leaders who want to increase meeting participation call for clarifying expectations, setting clear agendas, and asking open-ended questions. While these strategies have their merits, they might not always work because they’re usually based on the leader’s assumptions about what the team needs, rather than facts about what they actually need. Managers who […]
Approaching a conversation about improving an employee’s performance requires preparation, empathy, and a focus on collaboration. Even though hearing the truth about their current performance will be tough and potentially hurtful, it’s a teaching moment managers must embrace to help them become more resilient and adept at problem-solving and developing professional relationships. The author offers […]
In a new book titled Decision-Driven Analytics: Leveraging Human Intelligence to Unlock the Power of Data, professors and behavioral scientists Bart De Langhe and Stefano Puntoni challenge the idea that our decisions should be driven by data. Rather, they argue that the power of data can only be realized by putting data in the background. In this excerpt from their book, […]
The autonomy that many knowledge workers have in the workplace can come with the drawback of professional and personal isolation. This can have a negative impact on projects that require collaboration and creativity. One way organizations can mitigate this is by creating a “lab setting” in which employees agree to regular meetings where they share […]
In a new paper published in the 150th anniversary issue of Nature, Wang and colleagues developed a mathematical model to pinpoint what separates those who succeed from those who merely try, try again. Along with PhD student Yian Yin and postdoctoral researcher Yang Wang at CSSI, and James A. Evans of the University of Chicago, Wang found that […]
In 1979, a young associate professor at Harvard Business School published his first article for HBR, “How Competitive Forces Shape Strategy.” In the years that followed, Michael Porter’s explication of the five forces that determine the long-run profitability of any industry has shaped a generation of academic research and business practice. In this article, Porter […]
Watching the clock drags performance down, and optimism about the future does the opposite. Managers who understand this can help boost engagement. Our personal, internal, and utterly subjective experience of time is pieced together by cooperative neural and perceptual systems that are no less intricate than a finely crafted watch. This internal construction is important. […]
More than half of employees say they’re disengaged at work—with implications for both morale and value creation. Our research shows that better performance and higher well-being lead to healthier workplaces and more consistent organizational performance. Managers who move their employees up the satisfaction spectrum toward higher engagement are therefore making a strategic choice. A final thought […]
This playbook for founder CEOs on scaling from start-up to standout and beyond borrows lessons from the global B2B software-as-a-service industry. Scaling is no easy feat. Even companies that develop successful products have a greater than 80 percent chance of failure.1 Fast-growth companies face constant growing pains, especially at critical inflection points, and investors attribute 65 percent […]
In a world of rapid change, looking for certainty can obscure opportunity. Taking smaller yet bold steps provides a more sure-footed path through uncertainty. Conventional approaches to strategy have had to adapt in recent years, with rapid technological change and buffeting from external forces. In this episode of Inside the Strategy Room, the authors of the new book, The Imperfectionists: […]
Decades of scientific research show that stress and anxiety are prevalent problems at work, contributing to deficits in employee morale, well-being, and productivity. While anxiety is caused by a range of factors, including issues unrelated to people’s jobs, one common and pervasive cause is something specific to the workplace: incompetent leadership. Managers and leaders have a direct effect on their employees’ stress […]
Ed’s books on Leadership, Life and Business will elevate your knowledge and give you the confidence to apply it to your personal and professional life.