Princeton is discovering its entrepreneurial mojo, and part of that is integrating the traditional concerns of entrepreneurs – can we make something new that someone will buy – with the concerns of the humanities. The… Read more »
Thought Sparks
A bright spot on the leadership development horizon
Field notes from the final installment of my time delivering a custom executive education program for Genentech. What if we invest in developing our people and they leave? What if we don’t and they… Read more »
We say we want adaptive behavior but we reward other things…
As part of my research for my new book, I’ve been revisiting many management classics, including Arie de Geus’ book “The Living Company.” It’s a gem, and reveals what can happen when we don’t treat… Read more »
Transient advantage isn’t going away – how AI can help with inevitable inflection points
The field of strategy has long been anchored to the idea that industries exist and that the normal state of things is in equilibrium. Maybe that was the way things were, but it certainly isn’t… Read more »
The Perils of Great Success
Most of the time, bringing an innovation to life doesn’t work out. But sometimes, in a magical moment, product-market fit is achieved, the market responds and there is a glorious period of success. But the… Read more »
Choice architecture makes its way into anti-trust: Google Ruling
The theory of monopoly has to date been firmly rooted in the analog world. Traditionally, a monopoly occurred when there was a single seller or producer and no close substitutes. With the Justice Department’s ruling… Read more »
Maybe Brat Summer is what a lot of us need right now
Wasn’t it amazing that Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” was able to put a feminist spin on aggressive pink? Well here we are in the summer of 2024 and slime green has taken its place. Brat summer… Read more »
More than money – how do you design incentive systems that drive behavior?
When people in organizations talk about their incentive systems, inevitably the conversation involves compensation. Often, it stops there. But the wonderful work of Steve Kerr and others demonstrates that many things in your incentive system… Read more »
Why even great predictions don’t create great solutions
Research on how well people can predict the future comes to a resounding conclusion: not well. Asking “What will happen to me?” in a future situation misses the point. Instead, it’s much more fruitful to… Read more »
The seesaw of corporate succession – a “time zero” event
When the top leadership of an organization changes, boards often make decisions that seem sensible, but which may not reflect the pattern that made a company successful to begin with. A major reason is that… Read more »
June sure was busting out all over!
If the above reference sounds obscure, it’s from an old Rogers & Hammerstein musical that I was taken to as a child and every June, I simply cannot get it out of my head. It’s… Read more »
Discovering the Human Future of Work – Virtual Event Notes & an invitation to join in the fun
Speculating about what’s next for the workplace has become quite the hobby. Will it be place-bound or not? Will AI take jobs or create new ones? How can we scale systems but retain our humanity? … Read more »