Innholdsfortegnelse for 15. September-November 2024 i I by IMD

Sometimes, it takes others to see the potential in ourselves that we cannot see or even imagine. These champions challenge our limited perceptions of what we are capableof and inspire us to reach for something greater. As part of my first degree in engineering, I served an internship as a rank rookie at an outreach unit of one of India’s pre-eminent technology institutions. My manager tasked me with testing the heat efficiency of various solar water heating systems on the market. The project filled me with dread – I had classic imposter syndrome, convinced that I was not ready or able to take on such a big job. I wasn’t wrong. It was a calamitous affair. I made a series of mistakes, culminating in nearly short-circuiting the whole building while…

The four dimensions of adaptability show up in myriad ways with the 10,000 executive leaders we engage in our work every year. Here are some examples: Boundaries Spanning diverse stakeholder networks and world views is critical to the success of global mining giant Rio Tinto. Isabelle Deschamps, the mining group’s Chief Legal Officer, Governance and Corporate Affairs, is at the heart of orchestrating this challenge. According to Deschamps, this means “listening to different voices and considering other perspectives – because when we listen, we learn. As leaders, it’s important to employ and engage with those who excel in the areas we don’t. Together, we can find solutions to problems that are bigger than ourselves.” Value creation Driving parallel strategies to create value along two trajectories enabled Ernest Cu, CEO of…

THE POWER BROKER / ROBERT A CARO The inimitable Robert Moses is one of the most powerful and influential characters in the incredible story of New York City and its surrounding state. A divisive figure to this day, Moses helped shape the look and feel of New York that we know and love. The Power Broker is an in-depth look at how power dynamics work and how visionary individuals can reshape societies. The story of Moses teaches us about wielding influence and the downsides of unchecked power. Caro provides an unparalleled study of how the nuts and bolts of power work in complex systems and how one person can remold entire cities and societies. The book teaches us the importance of vision and determination, mastering bureaucratic and political systems, accumulating…

1. Create a bias-free culture. Prioritize building a culture where psychological safety is paramount and empowerment is embedded in your organization’s values. This ensures that employees feel valued and motivated to contribute, even when the leader is not present. In such a culture, employees are encouraged to look out for one another and collaborate, leading to a more cohesive and productive team. 2. Build equitable relationships. Actively manage your team’s in-group and out-group dynamics — where some members feel more connected and valued (in-group) while others feel excluded or overlooked (out-group). Recognize and address biases that may influence relationships within the team and take steps to foster positive relationships among team members. 3. Make decision-making inclusive. Be aware of your biases and take steps to curb their impact on the…

[ Human potential ] We often hear about "empowered women" but rarely "empowered men". It’s a well-meaning phrase, but here’s the twist: when you’re empowered, it suggests it’s up to someone else to give you power. So, if women are empowered, it implies they’re waiting for a nod, a green light, or a pat on the back from someone else. But what if I told you you're not “empowered” and don’t need to be because you already have the power? Think about it: we don’t refer to “empowered men” because it’s assumed they already have power. This double standard can leave women feeling like they need a special invitation to play the game. No wonder so many struggle with imposter syndrome. But you don’t need anyone’s permission to shine –…

1. Strategic decision-making is concerned with making trade-offs and aligned choices. 2. To align choices, you need to define in advance those critical domains where decisions need to be made. 3. To make choices, you need to have a range of high-quality options to choose from. 4. To make a trade-off, you need different criteria that reflect your values and those of key stakeholders. 5. To engage meaningfully and convincingly with your stakeholders, you need to consider their perspectives, criteria, and preferred options before making and communicating decisions.…

Everywhere we read the news, corporate turnarounds are desperately needed. Intel, the company that once put “Intel Inside” stickers on nearly every computer in America, is desperately trying to catch Nvidia in the AI chip race. General Motors and Volkswagen are scrambling to match the software prowess and battery technology of upstarts BYD and Tesla. Even Google is watching nervously as ChatGPT threatens to redefine internet search. These corporate giants are all asking the same question: What does a successful turnaround look like? A real turnaround takes years to fully materialize, but early indicators and subtle shifts signal that a company is on the right track. A change in organizational dynamics should be felt within months. The clarity of organizational priority should be immediate. We ask if leaders are having…

[ Coaching Corner ] Have you been in a meeting and felt you didn’t belong in the room? Looking around, it struck you that your colleagues were better informed, more capable and assertive, and somehow more legitimate. Or perhaps you’ve found yourself working on a project and doubting your ability to get it done. And, despite it working out, you said to yourself that your success was down to luck more than ability? Sound familiar? If so, you have likely grappled with “imposter syndrome”: those feelings of insecurity, inadequacy, and self-doubt. US psychologists Suzanne Imes and Pauline Clance coined the term in 1978, likening it to a feeling of “intellectual phoniness”. High-achieving women seemed particularly affected. While imposter syndrome doesn’t equate to a clinical diagnosis, the term has passed into…

While the more intense experiences from the conscious connected breathing sessions require a bounded space, executives can immediately gain the benefits of breathwork by practicing three simple techniques and integrating them into their daily routines: BREATHING FOR RELAXATION: 4-7-8 BREATH Developed by Dr Andrew Weil, who refers to it as a “natural tranquilizer for the nervous system”, the 4-7-8 breathing technique is a simple yet powerful method for promoting relaxation and calmness. It's particularly effective for managing stress or anxiety reactions and preparing for sleep. How to practice: 1. Sit or lie comfortably. 2. Exhale completely through your mouth. 3. Close your mouth and inhale quietly through your nose to a count of four. 4. Hold your breath for a count of seven. 5. Exhale completely through your nose or mouth – through pursed…

[ PREVIEW ] There is more to leadership than great results. Effective leaders in turbulent times act as responsible stewards of their businesses, people, and society. In the December edition of I by IMD, discover the latest thinking on how leaders can balance the demand for profit and elite performance with responsibility, ethics, and purpose. In the meantime, join us online daily at ibyimd.org, where you will find articles, videos, podcasts and learning exercises that will spark conversation and help you and your teams excel. Scan the QR code to visit ibyimd.org…

A soliloquy is “speaking one's thoughts aloud when by oneself”. In drama, soliloquies play critical roles. They let the audience encounter a character’s true inner state; they create intimacy and make the audience complicit in the character’s schemes. Shakespeare, a frequent user of soliloquies, is the author of the most famous one – Hamlet’s “To be or not to be, that is the question.” I did not know how I was going to shape that opening paragraph a few minutes ago. I was looking for a name for this column, a contribution that I intend to write quarterly as IMD’s new president, and I had an intense exchange with ChatGPT on possible options. After considering a few dozen alternatives, we landed on President’s Soliloquy – it captures perfectly the purpose…

[ In good company ] Are we living in a simulation? Might we be merely avatars in a cosmic video game? This seemingly fanciful question has animated thinkers from Lana and Lilly Wachowski (makers of the 1999 classic The Matrix) to Silicon Valley types today. Questions like this are catnip for a recovering philosophy major like me. One place where reality seems increasingly like a simulation is the labor market. Since the COVID-19 pandemic drove tens of millions to work or attend school from home and millions more to take on algo-driven gig work such as food delivery, labor has become increasingly intermediated online. From AI job interviews to work-from-home gigs to mass layoffs via Zoom calls, the basic transactions of work happen through a screen for much of the…

What insight does research provide on nurturing dynamic potential through these four core elements? Breadth of experience The key here is balancing novel and repeated work experiences. Research by Robert Lord and Rosalie Hall suggests repeated work experiences enable mastery and help build a deeper understanding of contingencies and contributing factors, supporting the development of mental models for strategic decision-making. In addition, leaders have to deal with the consequences of their earlier decisions, reinforcing our talent research that suggests leaders need three business cycles in role before attaining peak performance, especially in roles with complex stakeholder environments. In contrast, novel experiences test the limits of these mental frameworks, enabling leaders to refine and extend their frameworks for greater sophistication. Learning acquisition There are two factors to pay attention to in…

Workplaces are often compared to ecosystems, but what does that mean? When we talk about an organizational ecosystem, we picture a dynamic environment packed with different human types, each contributing their strengths and quirks to the balance and success of the enterprise. Among these differences, neurodivergence (variations in cognitive functioning) presents unique challenges and opportunities. But navigating this environment isn’t easy, especially when barriers block almost every path. Individual success within such an ecosystem, particularly for neurodivergent employees, often hinges on how well their coping mechanisms are understood and supported by organizational interventions. This is where Hala Annabi and Sarah Lebovitz’s theoretical Organizational Interventions Mitigating Individual Barriers (OIMIB) framework leaps in, offering insights into how organizations can mitigate individual barriers and enhance opportunities for neurodivergent employees. It's time we put…

There are two garden centers in my part of London. They are well-stocked and have pleasant staff, but I prefer to go to the one slightly further from my home. The employees there just know so much more. Which flowers are less likely to be eaten by slugs and snails? What trellis would this plant prefer to climb? Not only can the center’s staff answer my questions, but they also appear to have had a long experience of tending gardens themselves. They are, unsurprisingly, older than the workers at the other place, who are primarily teenagers still living with their parents. Similarly, back in the day when retail banks had local branches, I was invited to review my financial affairs with the manager. I have been with the same bank…

Brian Eno, the music producer who worked on landmark albums with global stars, including David Bowie and U2, believes that two things help artists to produce exceptional work: imposing limits and taking them out of their comfort zones. The explosion of music technology in recent decades – from all-in-one, affordable recording apps to elaborate instrument modeling and effects software – has created near-infinite opportunities to experiment. Yet, paradoxically, this surfeit of options has increased the risks of artists producing nothing of great value or getting lost trying. Fifty years ago, studio options were limited to a handful of tools, meaning it was possible to test most of the possibilities very quickly. “Now, there’s about 600,000,” says Eno. “If you want to take that approach and say, ‘Let’s try everything and…

1. Routinely make time to look back and be conscious of what you have accomplished. Be intentional about recognizing your achievements. 2. Institute rigorous reality checks. Find clear evidence to distinguish what is true and positive from what is not true and negative. 3. Avoid making comparisons in your thinking. Accept that you are good enough right now and as you are, and embrace that feeling. This is how to turn judgment into curiosity and offer yourself the freedom to try and to fail, allowing room to explore new ideas and possibilities. 4. Nurture your uniqueness. Dig into your individual experiences, your own personal story, and extract the things that make you different from anyone else. 5. Connect with others. Seek out feedback from trusted friends, family, or colleagues and…

BRAIN CIRCUITS 1. What is a defining characteristic of genius teams? a) They know how to suppress tension and avoid discomfort and conflict. b) The members don’t shy away from task or relationship conflicts. c) They are created in the image of their maker (you!). 2. How do genius teams feel about boundaries? a) They have none, which is what makes them so successful. b) They go to great lengths to maintain clear boundaries. c) They think they are best seen at cricket matches. 3. What role does humor play in genius teams? a) It doesn’t – they’re so task-focused they don’t have time to fool around. b) They constantly laugh and joke and refuse to take a project seriously unless it makes them laugh. c) They use humor as…

Operating as a social innovation lab, the Innovation Foundation uses a three-step approach – “Scan, Build, Scale” – to co-create solutions for labor market challenges. To illustrate how this works, let’s look at our Youth@Risk project. Scan We start in the “scan” phase, analyzing information to determine who within the target audience is most in danger of falling out of the workforce with serious long-term consequences. In this instance, we identified that young women on the urban fringes, living at or below the poverty line, who dropped out of both school and work, ran the highest risk of long-term social and economic damage. One challenge stood out: How can we help disadvantaged youth overcome the perception that they need to give up learning to earn income? Build In the “build”…

Most companies put a lot of emphasis on developing what they regard as high-potential talent. Our HR strategies are primarily focused on identifying future promise: pinpointing those with the potential to lead, investing in their growth and learning, and incentivizing them to move on and up through the ranks of leadership and responsibility. On the surface, this makes sense. For organizations, effective succession planning is the bedrock of business continuity, resilience to shock and vulnerability, and purposeful and intentional growth. For individuals, too, there’s a cachet in being identified as a high-potential manager. There’s also the typical grab-bag of goodies: leadership development programs, mentoring or coaching from senior executives, special stretch opportunities and assignments, and bonuses or hikes in pay. But are we missing a trick? What about people in…

In February 2017, Susan Fowler, a former engineer at ride-hailing company Uber, went public with allegations of sexual harassment. That same month, the self-driving car company Waymo accused Uber of calculated theft of its intellectual property. Over the next four months, a litany of further scandals rocked the company: co-founder and CEO Travis Kalanick was caught yelling at a driver, news leaked of a secret program to spy on rivals, and the company admitted it had underpaid drivers in New York for more than two years. Where was the board during this tumultuous time? By all accounts, they were distracted by infighting over the best way to handle the situation. Some board members publicly backed Kalanick, regarded as a Silicon Valley wunderkind, while others pushed for his departure. The disagreement,…

In today’s business environment, where high stress and constant connectivity are part of the job description, executives face unprecedented challenges in maintaining focus and well-being. Research shows that workplace stress around the globe is at a record high, and professionals are increasingly searching for effective strategies to manage their energy better and cultivate resilience. Among the most accessible and potent tools at their disposal – yet, in our experience the least used – is breathwork. This ancient practice can offer remarkable benefits tailored to the demands of contemporary business leadership. Though it has become increasingly popular in wellness offerings and retreats, its application within the business environment has been limited. This is a missed opportunity. Stress in the workplace Recent studies illustrate a disturbing rise in workplace stress, particularly among…

There is an ongoing debate about “de-growth” – that we will not be able to resolve planetary concerns without stopping economic growth and reinventing the meaning of positivity in our economies. Following a boom in the world's population, the multiplication by more than three of global GDP has compounded the need for consumption. For instance, while the population of the US grew 60% between 1970 and 2022, consumption increased by 400%. Proponents of de-growth argue that technological innovation cannot keep up with the negative impacts of rising populations and wealth. Adversaries of de-growth say that if firms stop generating returns, they won’t be able to reinvest in sustainability."…