New HBR article: Living with Complexity and Link for Free Download
Gokce Sargut and I are working together on the fascinating subject of how organizations can sensibly and strategically cope with the demands of complex situations. One of the papers from our ongoing research project is out in this months' Harvard Business Review. We offer a perspective on why complexity is so hard to deal with (because it has interactive qualities that make outcomes unpredictable) and offer some suggestions on how you might want to manage differently if you are facing a complex situation.
I will be doing a webinar on this topic on September 28 - more on that later.
For the first 100 readers, HBR has offered the opportunity to download the article for free. You can access the free download here:
Link:
https://archive.harvardbusiness.org/cla/web/pl/product.seam?c=13661&i=13663&cs=a03f1edb1a3280fb601ad40dde903190
If you're too late for the free link, drop me an email and we'll figure out how to get you a copy.
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- Posted Rita McGrath on August 26, 2011
Humanities Graduates Bring ...well…Humanity to Bear at Work
I thought this extremely thought provoking blog post by fellow Harvard Blogger Tony Golsby-Smith was a great reminder that although analytical tools and frameworks can help solve certain kinds of problems, they are hopeless facing other situations.
Among the advantages humanities training offers that Golsby-Smith points out are:
- The ability to deal with ambiguity and see richer patterns
- Creativity and curiosity, correlates with innovation
- Skilfull writing and presentation of ideas
I would also argue that students of the humanities are far more likely to be aware of aspects of leadership we don't spend nearly enough time on - for instance, the emotional meaning people make of executive actions. I've written before about the power of symbolism and was teaching about it recently at a company famous for its hard-charging, numbers oriented culture. After the session, not one but about a quarter of the people in the room came up to me with the same basic acknowledgement "I stink at symbolism - I get it wrong every time." Perhaps we should assign those folks a dose of some of the classics to see the meaning that people can make of their actions and how easy it is to be misunderstood.
With respect to writing and communicating, even though some people have a gift for it, there's no substitute for practice and feedback if you seek to get better. Humanities training does that, too.
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- Posted Rita McGrath on April 08, 2011
Prioritization - never an easy thing
Scott Anthony of Innosight wrote a great blog post: 3 ways to prioritize a long list of ideas which provides some good insight into how to start.
I'll add to that:: I also try to think of contrasts. Good projects (and what made them good) vs. not so good (and what made them that way). Good customers vs. not so. Great opportunities vs. things you wish you hadn't done...and eventually you can begin to discern the patterns that make some things desirable and others not. That can eventually lead to something as disciplined as a scorecard, which I've written about in various books. Should I put a sample on the tools page? Let me know....
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- Posted Rita McGrath on April 05, 2011
What Lynda Gratton has been up to
Lynda is a good friend and a gifted analyst of organizations in the wild. I thought my readers might be interested in her latest news update, which follows:
Dear Rita,
I’m really excited to update you on what’s going on in my world. First of all, many of you have heard me mention my new book on the future of work. I’m happy to announce that the book, called The Shift, will be launching on 12 May.
Additionally, at the Future of Work Research Consortium, Phase 2 is well under way, with recent events taking place in Mumbai, Singapore, and London. We have opened for sign-ups for Phase 3Three, which will begin in October. You can contact Tina Schneidermann at tina@hotspotsmovement.com to find out more and reserve your place.
Overall, at the Hot Spots Movement, much of our efforts are focused on building collaborative capabilities for our clients, who now see productive teamworking and collaboration as essential to their future success.
I also recently wrote in the FT about the status of women on boards in the UK. I invite you all to join in the discussion on my LinkedIn group, Facebook page and the Hot Spots newsletter. Please stay tuned for updates on my blog at http://lyndagrattonfutureofwork.typepad.com/ and Twitter account - @lyndagratton - as well.
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- Posted Rita McGrath on March 22, 2011
T-Mobile & AT&T! Oops…just kidding around about the network thing, honest!
Apple has certainly inspired a lot of imitators. Among them a series of ads in the "I'm a Mac / You're a PC" vein basically insulting AT&T's network coverage. Oops. And worst of all, they can't even pull the ads - once its out there on the Net it never goes away. Hey, was that Verizon smirking in the background...?
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- Posted Rita McGrath on March 20, 2011
