On striking the right balance between different-ness and same-ness Key insight Diversity in itself is not good and not bad. Nor is it a goal to strive for. Instead, it is a tool to be managed. Managing diversity well produces goods results. Managing diversity poorly produces bad results. An unavoidable buzzword In modern business jargon…

Most hiring managers are truly clueless Most hiring processes are shockingly dysfunctional If you ask successful business leaders what they think are the most important causes for their success, they almost always give credit to the people they have surrounded themselves with. Successful managers are good at getting “the right people on the bus and the…

A world that punishes fixed skills and prizes elastic ones From industrial revolution to knowledge revolution In the early 1700s, the world changed forever. In a way, this period marks the birth of the world as we know it. What happened? Well, Thomas Newcomen invented the steam engine. This steam engine went on to radically transform…

But smart teams do perform better Different teams perform differently In the modern workplace, most of the important decisions are made by teams. The board of directors, the management team, even the parliament: these are all teams, and they are tasked with making a number of decisions that potentially affect millions of people. These…

When it comes to team size, less really is more The promise of teamwork In today’s business world, the vast majority of work is done by teams. Surveys estimate that 65% to 95% of knowledge workers in the United States and Europe are part of more than one team at a time. In fact…