I remember a moment from my early years as a professional that changed the way I think about work. I walked into a meeting completely drained, deadlines looming, stress mounting, and everything around me felt heavy. Before we started, a colleague paused, looked at me, and said, “Are you okay?” It wasn’t the usual “How …
Imagine being in the captain’s seat of a ship navigating stormy, uncharted waters. The map? Outdated. The weather forecast? Unreliable. The crew? Looking to you for direction. As a leader, it can feel paralyzing when you don’t have all the answers. But here’s the twist: leadership in complexity isn’t about certainty’ s about communication. Jennifer …
Have you ever felt like the rules of the game are changing faster than you can adapt? That no matter how much expertise or experience you bring to the table, the challenges you face seem messier, less predictable, and harder to solve? I see this all around us today. The corporate world, especially in India, …
Ed Catmull, the co-founder of Pixar, has been known to say that he considers smart people, working together as more important than good ideas. To some that is quite shocking, coming from a creative powerhouse that has spawned ideas into blockbusters. But, a closer look at Pixar’s culture reveals that collaborating may actually be Pixar’s …
On January 27, 1967, a cabin fire occurred during a pre-launch test of the Apollo 1 spacecraft, resulting in the tragic deaths of all three astronauts aboard: Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger B. Chaffee. A huge blow to the morale of the team and the engineers at NASA. A massive overhaul ensued in engineering, flight …
In 1911, Endicott, New York, a company called “Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR)” was founded by Herman Hollerith, Charles Flint and Thomas J. Watson Sr. A company we now know as IBM. The founders enshrined three core values into the company: “Respect for the individual”, “The best customer service” and “The pursuit of excellence”. The values that were meant …
Analysts refer to LEGO as the Apple of Toys. And the system continues to thrive. LEGO’s steadfast belief in continuously learning, experimenting and reinventing, speaks to our research on the attributes that make businesses thrive and be resilient in the face of chaos and complexity.
In 1978 in a quaint town in Vermont, USA there existed a small ice cream company called Ben & Jerry’s. Childhood friends Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield who couldn’t make it to medical school or sell enough pottery, discovered their passion for creating unique and indulgent ice cream flavours. Having done a $5 correspondence course …
How often do people in your organisation disagree, reveal faults, deliver bad news on that high-stakes launch, without fearing retaliation or push back? Not always.. depends… maybe.. you might say. Unfortunately, a major tragedy a few years ago serves as a reminder that when courageous collaboration, trust and safely speaking up is not prioritized in companies, …
V leads product development in a software development company. In one of our coaching sessions she shared that she is noticing a concerning pattern during her Monday morning team meetings.* Instead of starting the week with energy and enthusiasm, there is an ‘eerie air of despair’ in the room. The dull energy is palpable in …
