April 2012 Blog Posts (5)

In the third piece in our five-part series 'As If People Matter', Michael Townsend discusses the qualities that business leaders must show, if they are to shine in a changing world.

"A new generation of CEOs will emerge."

Ray Anderson

Founder & Former Chairman, Interface Inc.

Who would want to be a business leader in these volatile times? The debate about boardroom pay and excess rages, the global economy is so volatile it…

We’ve had a long love affair with seeing our problems mirrored in triumphs & lives of exceptional people and high achievers. We love their biographies and hearing the secrets of great sports and military leaders. If only we could be respected like Nelson. If ony we could be as challenging as Richard Branson or as driven as Steve Jobs. If only we could manage like…

There have been some heated debates across the innovation forums and sites over the past few months concerning the role of  talented people in the innovation process. See this post by HBR’s Art Markman for example. Is innovation about just getting the smartest people, the greatest brains, the most dynamic individuals and waiting for their ‘eureka’ moment?

Or is it about being smarter with the talent you have, …

It is March 2012 and I am in London listening to Susan Cain, who is a phenomenon in the world of current ideas. How influential is she? Well, in the one second it has taken you to read that sentence approximately thirty-two people have viewed her standout talk at TED. And a further 451 have viewed it on YouTube – in the last hour. Her book…

When surveyed 80% of top executives agree their organisations need to innovate differently and 86% say that  partnerships and collaboration is the key to innovation. Yet – only 21% say they are developing them. In their latest 2012 Innovation Monitor, General Electric call this – The Partnership Paradox. So why does it exist? And…