Industries have changed…48M of 137M workers in the US can be classified as knowledge workers (Source: McKinsey Quarterly). The percentage of the knowledge stored in your own mind that is needed to do your job has decreased from 75% in 1986, to 15-20% in 1997 to 8-10% in 2006 (Source: Carnegie-Mellon University).  With this decentralized…

Often, in art, the most creative are those who come up with new perspectives. For example, Brancusi broke away from Rodin & Picasso broke away from the Impressionists. Touring the Museum of Modern Art in New York City with a group of business leaders, we came upon a suspended shovel.  There was great debate regarding…

As companies continue to expand to reach new customers/increase revenue and valuation, they need to build capacity to scale and support/drive that growth. Some keys for that growth include: –Focus on immediate opportunity: focus on near term gains –Seed other regions: incremental approach that nurtures large and long-term opportunities that can scale rewards –Do not…

Executives identified growing regulatory pressure from governments across the world as their top risk (Source:  KPMG Survey).  In the US, there are significant new compliance requirements (Dodd-Frank for financial services, Affordable Care Act for health care industry, etc.). Businesses must fundamentally change their operating model, as they build systems, processes and controls to comply with…

Does your company use executive education as a strategic tool? Reward? Preparation for promotion?  The Journal of Management Education (February, 2000) stated the purpose as:      ·  Recasting the worldviews of the executive teams and aligning organization to new directions      ·  Building awareness and support for strategic transitions      ·  Facilitating…

When brainstorming solutions to an issue, there are some clear steps that will improve the probability of the output being useful:      1.     Be clear about the problem statement, criteria and constraints      2.     Challenge assumptions ·       We always do it this way / We never do it that way ·       What if…

When you innovate, you improve something to make it less expensive or add more features. When you create, you change the way you look at the world. This new point of view enables you to see new products/services, cut costs, refine processes, or redefine an industry (Source:  BCG). Individuals create; organizations innovate. The idea is creative;…

There have been 1,000 studies in the past 50 years to determine the definitive styles, characteristics, or personality traits of great leaders. A Harvard Business Review article (February, 2007) highlighted that no one can be authentic by trying to imitate someone else. Young & Rubicam CEO Ann Fudge, “All of us have the spark of…

Creativity is unlearned, not learned. 1,600 five year-olds were tested for creativity by NASA to select innovative engineers and scientists, and 98% scored “highly creative.” These same children were tested 5 years later as ten year olds and that score dropped to 30%, then 12% when they were 15. 200,000 adults took the same test,…

47% of the S&P 500’s revenue is coming from outside the U.S.  Emerging markets provide fertile ground for producing and selling products and services. Advantages include favorable demographics and rising middle classes, while drawbacks are new “challenger” companies (Huawei, Vale, Bharti Airtel) and localization decisions (How do you effectively price? Manage margin? Source?). In a…