Strategy

The Cyberwar Hoax

Franz-Stefan Gady | Posted 05.29.2012

Franz-Stefan Gady

Among the many definitions of war, cyberwar often (not always) fails to meet two of the most basic aspects of how we understand war; war must be lethal and political.

Your Start-up Life: Best Business Books to Groom Your Team

Rana Florida | Posted 05.24.2012

Rana Florida

Insights about business can be gleaned from almost any good book -- whether it's a memoir by a professional athlete or a page-turning account of the ups and downs of a frenetic political campaign.

It's Time to Rethink Continuous Improvement

Ron Ashkenas | Posted 05.22.2012

Ron Ashkenas

Six Sigma, Kaizen, Lean, and other variations on continuous improvement can be hazardous to your organization's health. While it may be heresy to say this, recent evidence suggests that it's time to question these methods.

Why Strategies Go Off the Rails

Ron Ashkenas | Posted 05.22.2012

Ron Ashkenas

Have you ever been in a situation where everyone seemingly agrees on a particular strategy, but somehow it never happens?

RIP You

James M. Lynch | Posted 05.17.2012

James M. Lynch

You know we will all die, and hopefully have some sort of ceremony where loved ones and others get to say goodbye to us. But that inevitable death can make a big difference in the way we live our life today.

Pride & Prejudice: (What) Can Nonprofits Learn From the For-Profit World?

Richard Dare | Posted 05.07.2012

Richard Dare

Like everyone else in the business world, we nonprofits need money to operate, folks, and lots of it. Let's focus on some steps nonprofits might take to follow their siblings in the for-profit sector toward a brighter financial future.

Could Your Small Business Benefit From a Strategic Off-Site This Spring?

Karen Leland | Posted 05.07.2012

Karen Leland

While off-site strategy and planning sessions are often considered the purview of Fortune 500 companies, small businesses can benefit tremendously from a focused foray out of the office.

Learning to See the Future First

Jeff DeGraff | Posted 05.02.2012

Jeff DeGraff

All innovation starts as fiction before it moves across the aisle and becomes nonfiction. We do, in fact, believe it when we see it. That's what makes the world's fairs and exhibitions so compelling.

Re-thinking a Miami Cultural Institution

Myk Likhov | Posted 04.04.2012

Myk Likhov

I spent an outsized portion of last week on a unique experience. It was a four-day Maniacal Business Attack (MBA) orchestrated by COMMON for the W...

Using Mobile Content Effectively

Carol Roth | Posted 05.22.2012

Carol Roth

If mobile engagement is going to work, you have to move past the form of the tool to get into the nitty-gritty of its function and relevance to your business and your customer.

Design Briefs Advance Performance

Soren Petersen | Posted 05.20.2012

Soren Petersen

Maintaining an open perspective while staying focused on a goal can cause any aspiring design star to run in circles, wasting much of their valuable time and energy. Can a couple of hours spent composing an Inspirational Design Brief significantly improve their performance?

Showing Up Strategic

Rebecca Shambaugh | Posted 05.09.2012

Rebecca Shambaugh

The issue is not that women aren't strategic thinkers. The problem is that they sometimes don't come across that way. And in business, as in life, perception is reality.

The Voice: Is 'Staying in Character' Good Advice When Negotiating?

Coeli Carr | Posted 05.06.2012

Coeli Carr

Just about every business or money transaction you're involved with is a bit like these musical elimination rounds. You need to stay focused enough to emerge the better player.

Why Our Blunt Narrative Doesn't Win

Eric Sapp | Posted 05.01.2012

Eric Sapp

By making contraception only about women's health, we're telling voters contraception decisions are not about parents, not about men, and not about families.

Making Meetings Mean Something

Adele Scheele | Posted 04.11.2012

Adele Scheele

For many of us, coping with meetings is more stressful than doing the actual work -- it often feels like not much is accomplished.

The Crisis Of Global Power

Zbigniew Brzezinski | Posted 03.31.2012

Zbigniew Brzezinski

The world is now interactive and interdependent. It is also, for the first time, a world in which the problems of human survival have begun to overshadow more traditional international conflicts.

Start the Year in the Right Rhythm

Ron Ashkenas | Posted 03.12.2012

Ron Ashkenas

Every organization has a certain kind of music; making it harmonious is at least partly up to you. What are your ideas about harmonizing the rhythms of your organization?

9 Steps To Being Happy In Your Career

Caroline Dowd-Higgins | Posted 03.06.2012

Caroline Dowd-Higgins

I'm letting you off the hook for New Year career resolutions and I give you permission to take small and purposeful steps towards a career that will bring you happiness.

U.S. Pacific "Pivot" -- A New Cold War?

Joshua S. Goldstein | Posted 01.16.2012

Joshua S. Goldstein

Strategically, the United States has nothing to gain from clumsy moves to "contain" China. It has everything to gain from a cooperative partnership with the rising power and economic success that is China today.

Beware of the "Ides of Jobs"; Strategies to Recover From Job Adversity

Wendy N. Powell | Posted 01.04.2012

Wendy N. Powell

We all make mistakes on the job, and occasionally the boss steps in to correct our performance with discipline or a performance improvement plan. It's how you recover from adversity that sets you aside from the rest.

Be Prepared for What You Don't See Coming

Ron Ashkenas | Posted 01.04.2012

Ron Ashkenas

Whenever you change something, it's impossible to eliminate all of the unintended consequences. But the more you can anticipate the possibilities, and be ready to deal with them, the greater your chances of success.

Reorganizing? Think Again

Ron Ashkenas | Posted 12.27.2011

Ron Ashkenas

while managers love to engineer reorganizations, most managers (and their people) hate to be reorganized. So before you pull the lever, it will be helpful to ask yourself two questions.

Hire Up for Your 'Higher Up'

James M. Lynch | Posted 11.26.2011

James M. Lynch

If you don't have people in your life that you regularly feel encouraged, empowered and inspired by, then it's time to "hire up." Seek out friends that will engage, challenge and inspire you on a regular basis.

How Diversity Will Drive Business Growth

Glenn Llopis | Posted 11.22.2011

Glenn Llopis

Diversity management is the key to growth in today's fiercely competitive global marketplace. No longer can America's corporations make excuses about their lack of cultural intelligence.

"You Have Chosen Poorly!" The Problem With Historical Analogies and U.S. Policy

Franz-Stefan Gady | Posted 10.18.2011

Franz-Stefan Gady

Analogies are used widely for justification or advocacy or to assist in processing difficult information. The problem arises when policy makers select 'bad' analogies.