The world of work is changing. The often talked about ‘skills gap’ shows a need for creative, different thinkers to make sense of the rapid change and the disruption we’re facing in the world today. Dyslexic individuals have a range of natural strengths that make them ‘hard wired’ to step right in and fill this gap.
Five years in to McKinsey’s research, we’ve seen more women rise to the top levels of companies. Yet women continue to be underrepresented at every level.
If you ask working women with families why they step off the leadership track, it’s often not just because of what happens at the office. Rather, it’s because of the combined effect of their daytime…
The 10,000-hour rule says intense, dedicated practice makes perfect – at that one thing. But what if breadth actually serves us better than depth? The challenge we all face is how to maintain the benefits…
“I’m doing the right thing because I sleep better at night,” says an exhausted-sounding Julian Richer, after a momentous week in which he won plaudits for handing control of his Richer Sounds business to staff.
For once though, the entrepreneur’s good deeds have cost him sleep. The 60-year-old has been up all night after being engulfed in a media storm after the Guardian revealed he had transferred 60% of his shares to a John Lewis-style trust.
Each company has its own “culture” – the values and norms that define what is and isn’t appropriate behavior for the organization. Culture guides how you work, and a healthy one enables companies to attract and retain highly motivated employees and unite them around a common goal, purpose, or cause in pursuit of sustainable performance.
“Hire a chief innovation officer.” “Change the culture.” “Look outside your industry.” There’s no shortage of advice about how companies can become more innovative. The catch is that most of that advice is based on anecdotal evidence. But there’s one step companies can take that does have some data behind it.
Getting the best people into the most important roles does not happen by chance; it requires a disciplined look at where the organization really creates value and how top talent contributes.
Nearly a decade ago, CEOs surveyed by McKinsey stressed the importance of talent strategy to their organizations. But they also voiced misgivings about HR’s ability to manage the talent process strategically and deliver maximum value to the business.
“Hire a chief innovation officer.” “Change the culture.” “Look outside your industry.” There’s no shortage of advice about how companies can become more innovative. The catch is that most of that advice is based on anecdotal evidence. But there’s one step companies can take that does have some data behind it.
Awareness of the business case for inclusion and diversity is on the rise. McKinsey’s latest research reinforces the link between diversity and company financial performance—and suggests how organisations can craft better inclusion strategies for a competitive edge.
“There’s no team without trust,” says Paul Santagata, Head of Industry at Google. He knows the results of the tech giant’s massive two-year study on team performance, which revealed that the highest-performing teams have one thing in common: psychological safety, the belief that you won’t be punished when you make a mistake. Studies show that psychological safety allows for moderate risk-taking, speaking your mind, creativity, and sticking your neck out without fear of having it cut off — just the types of behavior that lead to market breakthroughs.
As digital transformation disrupts the workplace, one factor more than any other will determine which companies turn digital to their advantage. That critical element is people: the talented employees who are able to use existing digital technologies and adapt to evolving methods and new approaches.
2017 will be a challenging, exciting, and transformational year for HR and business leaders around the world. Topics like the future of work, organizational design, culture and feedback, and design thinking in HR will prompt us to stretch our thinking, expand our roles, and drive us closer to the business.