Leadership Imperatives The predictions of trends for 2021 are in and, no surprise, they tell us that 2020 accelerated the trends that have been growing slowly over the past few years – remote work, a human-centered focus on wellbeing, digitization on steroids, DEI efforts that actually yield diverse and inclusive work environments, and enterprises with…
Finding the Gift and Opportunity
It should not come as news to you that the world has been disrupted. Our health, economic, and social contexts have been completely upended. As is the case in any disruptive change, we long to “go back to normal”. All this disruption is exhausting. Regular routines, with the sense of certainty and control they bring…
Operating an Ocean Liner Like a Speed Boat – the Zappos Journey
At this year’s Responsive Conference, John Bunch, Lead Organizational Designer at Zappos told the story of Zappos’ organizational journey. Zappos is, first and foremost, a customer service operation, regardless of what they sell. They are focused on establishing a healthy and sustainable organization that can weather the changes and disruptions that could undermine their existence….
NEW WAYS OF WORKING: THE STRUCTURE/FREEDOM PARADOX
Perhaps it is not so much a paradox as it is finding the right balance. There is no one right way to organize work – some ways work better than others depending on the organization’s strategic focus and associated design principles. There are consequences to the way work is organized and the way in which…
Structuring for Innovation: Don’t Lose the Schmooze
It’s not often that I have a visceral reaction to something I read in a Harvard Business Review article. However, Safi Bahcall’s article The Innovation Equation in the March/April 2019 issue got my attention. The Challenge Bahcall addresses the problems that start-ups can face as they mature into larger organizations. As they grow, they often…
Creating Responsive Organizations
This year’s Responsive Conference brought together management innovators and organizational transformation practitioners to share ideas and practices for creating responsive organizations. I was delighted to be a member of the team organizing the conference as lead facilitator for the small-group discussions that took place both days. WHAT IS A RESPONSIVE ORGANIZATION? The Responsive Manifesto makes…
Leading Digital Transformations
As technological advances continue to impact all aspects of business at break-neck speed, the phrase “digital transformation” is on the lips of many executives. Companies are transforming to be more digitally competitive. Artificial Intelligence, augmented reality, and blockchain are just some of the technologies that are upending the way business is done. As the customer…
“Pop-Up” Teams
In today’s world of rapidly changing markets and technological advances, the traditional focus on scale and efficiency is going the way of the dinosaur. Rigidly structured, “siloed” organizations seem to be constantly restructuring and changing leaders to be competitive. This form of change creates a lot of angst and disruption to the organization and the…
Setting a New Leader Up for Success
If your organization is experiencing ongoing changes in leadership – whether due to turnover, reorganization, or a merger or acquisition – you are in good company. Organizations often need some degree of redesign to meet the demands of an ever-changing environment and, as a result, new business units or teams are created with new leaders. …
The Rise of Teams
Annual research on trends in human capital management from Bersin by Deloitte listed “the rise of teams” as the top trend for 2016. Teams continue to be at the forefront of how work gets done in 2017. Bersin predicts: “To thrive in the digital age organizations should focus on breaking functional groups into smaller teams,…