Tag Archives: Leaders

Decoding leadership: What really matters

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By Claudio Feser, Fernanda Mayol, and Ramesh Srinivasan

New research suggests that the secret to developing effective leaders is to encourage four types of behavior.

Telling CEOs these days that leadership drives performance is a bit like saying that oxygen is necessary to breathe. Over 90 percent of CEOs are already planning to increase investment in leadership development because they see it as the single most important human-capital issue their organizations face. And they’re right to do so: earlier McKinsey research has consistently shown that good leadership is a critical part of organizational health, which is an important driver of shareholder returns. Continue reading →

Evaluate Your Leadership Development Program

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By Harrison Monarth

Despite studies showing that succession is an essential part of strategic planning, many companies ignore leadership development to focus on more immediate challenges. But your organization’s future success depends on identifying and developing the next generation of its leaders.

According to a 2014 survey from Deloitte, 86% of business leaders know that their organizations’ future depends on the effectiveness of their leadership pipelines — but a survey of 2,200 global HR leaders found that only 13% are confident in their succession plans, with 54% reporting damage to their businesses due to talent shortages. To improve your leadership development strategy, look at the criteria you’re using to identify potential leaders, what you’re doing to assist with their development, and how you’re measuring their success. Continue reading →

Stop Playing the Victim with Your Time

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by Elizabeth Grace Saunders

It’s just not fair. There’s always too much to do. Everyone just keeps piling more work on me. I feel so helpless.

Sound familiar? If so, you’re not alone. Many people feel like they have a crushing number of requests coming at them from every side that make them a victim to their circumstances. They see forces outside themselves as the reason that they don’t have time to exercise, can’t leave work at a reasonable time, or just generally struggle to get everything done. Although there are occasionally situations that are outside of your control — that recent bout with the flu, for example — most aren’t. And even though it can feel gratifying in the short term to blame others for your situation, this attitude toward your time investment will leave you truly powerless in the long run. Continue reading →

How to Lead With Authenticity

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by Lee Colan

Winner leaders are accessible and authentic. That formula for leadership success has not changed in 25 years. Here are some current examples and steps you can take to step up your leadership game.

For 25 years, I asked lots of clients and colleagues questions about their experiences with strategy execution (what I call adherence), including this one: What is the most critical action a senior leader can take to improve consistent adherence to a plan?

I repeatedly received the same answer: Be accessible and be yourself. Continue reading →

The Capabilities Your Organization Needs to Sustain Innovation

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By Linda Hill, Greg Brandeau, Emily Truelove, Kent Lineback

Why are some organizations able to innovate again and again while others hardly innovate at all?  How can hundreds of people at a company like Pixar Animation Studios, for example, work together to produce blockbuster after blockbuster over nearly two decades – a record no other filmmaker has ever come close to matching? What’s different about Pixar that enables it not only to achieve, but also to sustain innovation?

It’s a crucial question. In recent years, many people have sought to understand how organizational innovation works, hoping to shed light on the broader and deeper dynamics and principles at play. They have debunked the myth of the lone genius, discrediting the idea that innovation is purely a solitary act or flash of insight in the mind of one creative individual. Continue reading →