Work is becoming increasingly project-based; the ability to navigate networks and work within a team towards the completion of simple and complex projects will progressively be what is required of the future workforce. Unfortunately, we are still basing our education system today on models and content that were appropriate 50-100 years ago but that are […]
Making Your Intentions Work in An Organization
We are becoming increasingly aware of the need for collaboration and cooperation. This is not yet the mainstream for management and organizations, but the more complexity becomes the backdrop and context of what we do and experience, the more we need to find up-to-date ways to exist within that complexity. Is it just about being […]
What If We Need Intelligent Emotions More Than Emotional Intelligence?
We know that intelligence and emotions are not the same. Certainly, people may be capable of great intellectual prowess but be cold and unfeeling. Other people may be kind and generous without having any particular academic inclination. While there may be extreme cases, most of us, and especially leaders and managers, live with the delicate […]
A New Curriculum for Business and Management
Our business world is changing rapidly. Complexity dominates and old solutions no longer work. Some refer to this as the ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’. Given all these changes, it is remarkable to see that MBAs are offering much the same program content as 20 years ago. We believe that a radical change is needed in the […]
It’s a Wonderful Life – If You Change Your Thinking
In our blog we talk about issues that affect organizations. However, those organizations are made up of people in families, and at this time of the year people enjoy family time but many suffer the repeated frustration, hard work and negative emotional undertow of the “festivities”. Does it have to be that way? It doesn’t […]
Systems Thinking in a Milan Taxi
The World Expo took place in Milan this year and brought hundreds of thousands of people to visit the city. It’s a city I lived in for many years so I know its appeal and pitfalls well. While taking a ride to the airport in Milan for a London flight this week, a chat with […]
How to Grow a Startup into a Sustainable Company
Startups abound. There is no lack of imagination, determination, and even funding for a good idea. The problem becomes, what happens next? The mortality rates of startups is high. We were asked, how can you keep startups alive so they grow to the a next, bigger and economically sustainable phase, especially given the complexity of […]
Why Doesn’t Increased Effort Equal Increased Productivity?
People work hard when they care about achieving results in their organization. Sometimes very hard. And yet, why is that no matter how much extra effort they may make, this doesn’t always translate into extra results? In some cases, paradoxically, the harder people work the further they seem to be from where they expect. What’s […]
Pride Comes Before a Fall – A (Systemic) Lesson For Leaders and VW
Being conceited can come from occupying a position of power. It’s easy to convince yourself that if you are in the driving seat it’s because you deserve it, because you are intrinsically better than others. This is a vicious circle of wrong assumptions. If you are rich, you are better than the poor (even though you […]
Strategy Failure: Why We Need A Whole New World
In a recent article about strategy and execution, Roger Martin writes in the Harvard Business Review: “To fix our problem with strategy failure, we need to stop thinking in terms of the brain-to-body metaphor. Instead, we should conceive of the corporation as a white-water river in which choices cascade from the top to the bottom.” […]
