Sometimes the best way to structure your day doesn’t spring immediately to mind—a “workflow,” or a planned series of activities that help you complete a task, is needed. You may need a way to organize your thoughts and tasks in order to maximize efficiency for both yourself and your clients’ benefit. To become a go-to…

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Paying off a mortgage is a momentous financial achievement. It can happen during the process of selling a home or before. During a sale, homeowners often ask me when they should stop paying a mortgage. My guide will walk you through the entire process, from understanding your mortgage terms to updating your records. I will…

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Coats Digital has announced that Thailand's Pilot Knit Garment has adopted its FastReactPlan solution to transform manual planning processes, improve efficiencies, and reduce lead times. This integration enhances visibility, streamlines production, and supports future growth for the sportswear manufacturer, part of the Yong Udom Textile Group.

Paul Price, former Burberry chief merchandising officer, returns to lead merchandising, planning, licensing, architecture, and showroom teams, starting December 9, 2024. Reporting to CEO Joshua Schulman, he joins Burberry’s executive committee. Price, praised for his past contributions, expressed excitement to drive Burberry’s next phase of growth.

From learning Python to creating analytical reports, learn about ten easy steps to become a data scientist.

The fastest and simplest route to becoming a software engineer with little cost.

There are many reasons to choose the International Drive Resort Area in Orlando as the site for successful meetings and events. Flexible convention space, a wide range of accommodations, top-rated airports and convention center and sophisticated retail, dining and entertainment districts make it a top pick among meeting planners.

Connected Smart Buildings Form Communities of Clean Power cbeaty Fri, 11/18/2022 - 15:18

Changes in Communications Technologies Affecting Final Acceptance by AHJs cbeaty Tue, 11/22/2022 - 10:27

Lower Income Households Warming Up to Solar Power hsauer Tue, 11/22/2022 - 14:18

Sunil Gupta, Harvard Business School professor, has spent years studying successful digital strategies, companies, and leaders, and he's made Amazon and its legendary CEO Jeff Bezos a particular areas of focus. Drawing on his own in-depth research and other sources, including a new collection of Bezos' own writing, "Invent and Wander," Gupta explains how Amazon has upended traditional corporate strategy by diversifying into multiple products serving many end users instead of focusing more narrowly. He says that Bezos's obsession with the customer and insistence on long-term thinking are approaches that other companies and senior executives should emulate.

Joseph Fuller, professor at Harvard Business School, and Allison Bailey, senior partner at Boston Consulting Group, say that the Covid-19 pandemic is only accelerating a recent trend of companies turning to digital talent platforms for highly skilled workers. The need for agility and specialized skills has more firms seeking help with projects. Meanwhile, more workers are joining these online marketplaces for the promise of greater flexibility and agency. Fuller and Bailey explain how organizations can strategically employ this on-demand workforce to unlock value. With HBS researcher Manjari Raman and BCG partner Nithya Vaduganathan, they wrote the HBR article "Rethinking the On-Demand Workforce."

Barry Nalebuff, professor at Yale School of Management and cofounder of Honest Tea, says too many companies shy away from cooperating with a competitor, and they’re leaving value on the table. He says even when working with other companies to find mutual benefits is not a clear win, cooperating may still be better than not cooperating. He shares how Honest Tea, Apple, Ford, and other firms analyze and capitalize on opportunities without giving up their secret sauce. Nalebuff is the author, with NYU Stern professor Adam Brandenburger, of the HBR article "The Rules of Co-opetition."

Martin Lindstrom, founder and chairman of Lindstrom Company, says that many companies are still held back by doing things the way they've always done them, or failing to break down bureaucracy. For Lindstrom, it's not just about getting away from bureaucratic norms for the sake of innovation, but because so many things workers do each and every day don't actually make much sense. He suggests workers, leaders, and organizations consider ways in which processes can be improved - and the ways these new processes can improve life for everyone. And he argues that companies should actually devote a team or department to making sure common sense is used throughout the organization. Lindstrom is the author of the book "The Ministry of Common Sense: How to Eliminate Bureaucratic Red Tape, Bad Excuses, and Corporate BS."

Alison Dachner, management professor at John Carroll University, and Erin Makarius, management professor at the University of Akron, say that an organization can become more competitive by implementing a stronger offboarding process. Their research shows that similar to the way universities maintain alumni networks, an offboarding strategy keeps former employees networked, which leads to more employee referrals, new business, expert consulting, or even re-employment. Dachner and Makarius wrote the HBR article "Turn Departing Employees into Loyal Alumni."

Melissa Bernstein, cofounder of the toy company Melissa & Doug, spent decades hiding her struggles with depression even as she launched and led a booming business focused on bringing joy to children and raised six of her own. She finally opened up to her family, colleagues, and the public and recently launched an organization to give people better tools to discuss and manage their mental health. Bernstein explains what managers and organizations can do to help workers facing depression and other illnesses. She’s the author of the book LifeLines: An Inspirational Journey from Profound Darkness to Radiant Light.

Felix Oberholzer-Gee, professor at Harvard Business School, says many organizations spend so much energy on strategy that it overwhelms with conflicting priorities. Instead, he argues companies should simplify and focus on two value drivers: customer satisfaction and employee satisfaction. By aligning strategic initiatives on these alone, leaders make their workers’ jobs less complicated and also improve customer experiences. Oberholzer-Gee is the author of the HBR article “Eliminate Strategic Overload” as well as the new book "Better, Simpler Strategy: A Value-Based Guide to Exceptional Performance."

Mary Barra, chair and CEO of General Motors, says that electric vehicles are the future for the company and the automobile industry. GM has said it will phase out vehicles using internal combustion engines by 2035 and go carbon neutral at all of its facilities. Barra describes how she's executing on that plan as well as offering broader leadership lessons in an interview with HBR editor Amy Bernstein.

Carol Fishman Cohen, human resource consultant and CEO of iRelaunch, says that extended career breaks have always been common. Now the pandemic has made them even more widespread. So, companies are increasingly considering formal back-to-work programs and “returnships.” That’s where employers set up special training and support mechanisms to ease people back into work. Cohen speaks about the best practices for organizations and returning workers alike. She's the author of the HBR article "Return-to-Work Programs Come of Age."

Sarah Federman, assistant professor at the University of Baltimore, studies how companies handle their historical misdeeds and what that means for employees and customers. From insurance firms that backed slave owners to railroad companies that transported victims of the Holocaust, many legacy companies can find they played a role in past transgressions. Federman makes a moral and practical argument for uncovering and addressing these misdeeds, even though there may no longer be legal repercussions. And she shares how some leaders have been transparent, apologized, and found meaningful ways to make up for their organization's difficult history. Federman wrote the HBR article “How Companies Can Address Their Historical Transgressions: Lessons from the Slave Trade and the Holocaust.”

A decade ago, the U.S. Supreme Court changed the rules on how businesses could donate to political campaigns. Since then, hundreds of millions of corporate dollars have been spent on local, state, and federal elections, often without transparency. Many CEOs and boards feel this is the only way they can curry favor with policymakers. Dorothy Lund, an associate professor of law at the University of Southern California, and Leo Strine Jr., counsel at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen, and Katz and a former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Delaware, say this isn't just bad for democracy. It's bad for business because it distracts companies from innovation and growth and risks serious backlash from consumers, employees, and shareholders. They suggest ways to dial back corporate political spending and improve the economy for all. They are the authors of the HBR article "Corporate Political Spending is Bad Business: How to Minimize the Risks and Focus on What Counts.”

Purpose has become a corporate buzzword over the past decade. Leaders are embracing the idea that companies can’t just do well financially; they also have to do good for society. But how many organizations are really walking the talk? Ranjay Gulati, professor at Harvard Business School, has studied how dozens of purpose-driven companies -- from Etsy in the United States to Recruit in Japan -- simultaneously pursue profits. He argues that while we all want a win-win, leaders must also sometimes learn to make thoughtful tradeoffs. Gulati is the author of the book "Deep Purpose: The Heart and Soul of High-Performance Companies” and the HBR article “The Messy but Essential Pursuit of Purpose.”

Keith Ferrazzi, founder of the consulting firm Ferrazzi Greenlight, led a survey of more than 2,000 executives to study how they reengineered operations during the pandemic. The research identified a kind of extreme adaptability at the team and organizational levels that helped some companies come out on top. Ferrazzi argues that after months of ruthlessly adapting, leaders should continue on a path of resilience and agility to stay competitive in the post-Covid-19 world. And he offers concrete steps to take. Ferrazzi is a coauthor of the new book "Competing in the New World of Work: How Radical Adaptability Separates the Best from the Rest."

Over the past few years in the United States, we’ve seen some horrific examples of racism seize the public consciousness. Amid all these tragedies – and the protests that followed – U.S. business leaders promised they would do their part to fight the problem, making workplaces more diverse, equitable and inclusive. But now it's time to go a step further, say James White and Krista White, father-and-daughter authors of the new book, “Anti-Racist Leadership: How to Transform Corporate Culture in a Race-Conscious World”. They share their own experiences as Black Americans in the workplace and lessons from James' time as CEO of Jamba Juice. And they offer advice on how corporate leaders can promote lasting change in their own organizations and society at large.

Randall Peterson, founding director of the Leadership Institute at London Business School, studies coworker dynamics. He says lately, the idea of head-to-head competition for advancement has gone out of style in favor of a more cooperative ideal. In reality, he says, interpersonal relationships at work can be both. Sometimes you cooperate closely with colleagues. Sometimes you compete directly with them. And sometimes it’s most effective to work independently. He explains how to deal with each scenario. And he shares how managers can help their teams find the right balance. Peterson is a coauthor of the HBR article “When to Cooperate with Colleagues and When to Compete.”

It's a cliche, but they say it's best to write what you know. That was the case for comedian Sarah Cooper, who rose to viral social media fame in the Trump era through her lip sync TikTok videos. She formerly worked at Yahoo and Google, and she found her way into comedy, in part, by looking at and pointing out the absurdities of corporate culture. She speaks about how humor helped her manage a team, why she took the big risk to quit her job, and how she's navigating the new work world of Hollywood. Cooper is the author of the forthcoming audio book "Let's Catch Up Soon: How I Won Friends and Influenced People Against My Will."

It's a dilemma facing more and more brands: should you sell your goods on Amazon? It's the most visited e-commerce platform in the U.S. and the dominant retailer in 28 other countries. But that reach comes at a price. There are downsides like costs, competition, and lack of data. Ayelet Israeli is an associate professor at Harvard Business School and a coauthor of the HBR article "Should Your Company Sell on Amazon?" She talks through step-by-step how businesses can decide whether Amazon is right for them.

Most organizations have now accepted that the days of all their knowledge workers coming into the office full time are over. So what's next? Sid Sijbrandij, CEO and cofounder of Gitlab, thinks all-remote can be the answer. His open-source software development company took that approach from the start not because of the pandemic but because its founding team was dispersed and early employees were more productive at home. Now with more than 1,300 people spread across more than 60 countries, GitLab is said to be the world’s largest all-remote company. He shares the lessons he's learned about the best way to manage a distributed workforce.

Artificial intelligence technology has been advancing, and businesses have been putting it into action. But too many companies are just gathering a bunch of data to kick out insights and not really using AI to its fullest potential. Joshua Gans, professor at Rotman School of Management, says businesses need to apply AI more systemically. Because decision-making based on AI usually has ripple effects throughout the organization. Gans cowrote the HBR article “From Prediction to Transformation" and the new book "Power and Prediction: The Disruptive Economics of Artificial Intelligence."

By hosting the podcasts How I Built This and Wisdom from the Top, Guy Raz has won an inside look at how visionary leaders build their own careers and incredible companies. While many leaders have unique qualities that help them succeed, he has identified three behaviors that consistently rise to the surface. These leaders create a culture of collaboration. They encourage risk-taking. And they allow for failure. Raz shares stories of leaders of everything from Starbucks to Proctor & Gamble.

From Microsoft to Google to Meta, many of the world's biggest tech companies have been announcing layoffs recently. Their explanation is usually that they overhired and need to cut costs. But Harvard Business School professor Sandra Sucher, who has been studying layoffs for years, says companies often underestimate the downsides. Layoffs don’t just come with bad publicity, she explains. They also lead to loss of institutional knowledge, weakened engagement, higher turnover, and lower innovation as remaining employees fear risk-taking. And she says it can take years for companies to catch up. Sucher is a coauthor of the HBR article "What Companies Still Get Wrong About Layoffs."

The online application ChatGPT and its integration into Microsoft search engines have put generative artificial intelligence technology in the hands of millions of people. Early adopters are using them in their daily jobs, and preliminary academic studies show big boosts in productivity. Managers can’t sit on the sidelines, says Ethan Mollick, an associate professor of management at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He argues that companies urgently need to experiment with ChatGPT and eventually develop policies for it. He explains the breakthrough, some promising uses, open questions, and what the technology could mean for workers, companies, and the broader economy. Mollick wrote the HBR article "ChatGPT Is a Tipping Point for AI."

From Theranos to Enron, we can't get enough of corporate scandals. We also can't get enough of the intriguing people who perpetrate them. But instigators of fraud are not all Disneyesque villains chasing money and power at any cost, says DePaul University accounting professor Kelly Richmond Pope. She studies white-collar crime and finds that besides intentional perpetrators, there are also accidental and righteous ones. And she shares real stories of these long-overlooked employees and explains exactly which behaviors and incentives should raise red flags for managers and leaders. Pope is the author of the new book Fool Me Once: Scams, Stories, and Secrets from the Trillion-Dollar Fraud Industry.

Sabbaticals have long been thought of as an academic privilege, but a growing number of companies offer them, especially since the pandemic. DJ DiDonna, a senior lecturer at Harvard Business School and founder of The Sabbatical Project, has interviewed hundreds of workers who’ve taken them and studied organizations that offer them. From his research and his own experience on a sabbatical, DiDonna shares the surprising impacts that extended time off—paid or unpaid—can have on workers, teams, and the overall organization. And he explains how organizations can make sabbaticals work both financially and culturally.

We know that trying new things, taking risks, and even failing are vital to most success stories. But getting out of areas where you’re comfortable and breaking through to the next level is easier said than done. Andy Molinsky, professor of organizational behavior at Brandeis International Business School, says that there are actions we all can take to get out of our safe zone and achieve our goals. In this classic episode, he shares his research and advice with former IdeaCast host Sarah Green Carmichael. Molinsky is the author of Reach: A New Strategy to Help You Step Outside your Comfort Zone, Rise to the Challenge and Build Confidence.

After decades of industrial policy that favored globalization and free trade, we are entering a new era. Prompted by the pandemic, climate change, rising geopolitical tensions and economic concerns, countries and groups of countries are once again using the power they have to intervene in the private sector, whether it's investing in drug development, offering clean energy tax breaks, or incentivizing domestic manufacturing. Harvard Business School professor Willy Shih wants to help corporate leaders navigate these changes in a way that protects their businesses, workers, and customers. He explains the new challenges - as well as opportunities. Shih wrote the HBR article, "The New Era of Industrial Policy is Here."

Companies plan for crises and aim to be resilient and adaptive in the face of all kinds of risks, but it’s always easier said than done. And perhaps none of these threats is as serious as war. That’s what Roman Rodomansky had to prepare his company for. He’s the cofounder and COO at Ralabs, a Ukrainian software development company. As Russia prepared to invade his home country, Rodomansky and his leadership team crafted a plan to survive and keep serving clients. He shares how his firm put people first, communicated with customers, and managed to become resilient. Rodomansky wrote the HBR article “A Cofounder of Ralabs on Leading a Ukrainian Start-Up Through a Year of War.”

After the summer of 2020 in the United States, many organizations made a big push to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in their ranks and operations. But now, many fear that that momentum is slipping, especially in the face of economic headwinds. Laura Morgan Roberts, organizational psychologist and professor at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, says it is time to recommit to these efforts by creating the conditions for all workers to flourish. She explains four freedoms that organizations can foster to allow employees to become their best selves — and even be able to fade into the background when they choose. Roberts wrote the HBR Big Idea article “Where Does DEI Go From Here?”

The future of AI goes far beyond individuals using ChatGPT. Companies are now integrating artificial intelligence into all aspects of their businesses. One key player in this transition is Nvidia, the AI-driven computing company, which makes both hardware and software for a range of industries. In this episode, HBR editor in chief Adi Ignatius speaks with Nvidia’s CEO and cofounder Jensen Huang at HBR’s Future of Business conference about how he keeps his company agile in the face of accelerating change and where he sees AI going next.

For a long time, conventional wisdom ruled that companies should avoid reselling their own products in used condition. There’s the threat of cannibalization, marketing confusion, and tricky logistics that can erase margins. But more name-brand retailers are jumping into resale, says Wharton marketing professor Tom Robertson. Thanks in part to Gen Z with its zeal for sustainability, he says consumer demand is rising fast for reused goods. He sees a revolution where brands cash in on resale, knowing that if they don’t own those customer relationships and sales, others will. Robertson wrote the HBR article “The Resale Revolution.”

In a globally connected and highly politicized world, organizations are increasingly expected to comment on social, political, and environmental issues. But taking a stance doesn't always make business sense and can backfire when employees or consumers see a disconnect between leaders’ words and actions. Alison Taylor, associate professor at New York University, says there's a better way to make decisions on corporate speech, which includes involving workers in the process. Taylor is the author of the HBR book Higher Ground: How Business Can Do the Right Thing in a Turbulent World and the HBR article “Corporate Advocacy in a Time of Social Outrage.”

Organizations regularly reward devoted workers who put in long hours. At the same time, “always-on” communication spurred by the pandemic and new digital tools encourage workaholism. But research shows that it’s not just individuals who are harmed by overworking. Their employers are, too. Malissa Clark, associate professor and head of the Healthy Work Lab at the University of Georgia, explains how companies unwittingly create a workaholic culture — one that ultimately backfires with higher turnover and disengaged employees. She shares what companies can easily do to change that. Clark wrote the new book Never Not Working: Why the Always-On Culture Is Bad for Business--and How to Fix It.

Managing technology has never been more challenging. HBR IdeaCast’s new special series, Tech at Work, offers research, stories, and advice to make technology work for you and your team. This week: how your team can get the most out of working with generative AI.

Around 18 million adults in the U.S. alone suffer from long Covid, a chronic illness with a wide range of symptoms and severity. With approved therapies a long way off, workers with long Covid often struggle in silence. And most companies have neither a good understanding of the situation nor effective policies in place, say MIT research scientist Beth Pollack and Vanguard University professor Ludmila Praslova. They share the conditions associated with long Covid, what life is like for those workers, and the accommodations and flexibility they recommend HR leaders and organizations implement. Pollack and Praslova are coauthors with researcher Katie Bach of the HBR Big Idea article “Long Covid at Work: A Manager's Guide.”

Venture capital firms notoriously embrace risk and take big swings, hoping that one startup will become a monster hit that pays for many other failed investments. This VC approach scares established companies, but it shouldn’t. Stanford Graduate School of Business professor Ilya Strebulaev says that VC firms have proven best practices that all leaders should apply in their own companies. He explains exactly how VC’s operationalize risk, embrace disagreement over consensus, and stay agile in their decision-making—all valuable lessons that apply outside of Silicon Valley. With author Alex Dang, Strebulaev cowrote the new book The Venture Mindset: How to Make Smarter Bets and Achieve Extraordinary Growth and the HBR article "Make Decisions with a VC Mindset."

Managing technology has never been more challenging. HBR IdeaCast’s new special series, Tech at Work, offers research, stories, and advice to make technology work for you and your team. This week: how to prepare your company for the future of spatial computing.

We live in an age where we have more data than ever. But most leaders have two strong reactions to new data. Either they rely too heavily on studies or information to make decisions. Or they dismiss outright data that could be very relevant. The better way is learning how to interpret, question, and engage with data and studies, say Harvard Business School professor Amy Edmondson and Johns Hopkins Carey Business School professor Michael Luca. They break down the essential analytical tools to assess and interrogate data to be able to apply it to business decisions. Edmondson and Luca are coauthors of the HBR article "Where Data-Driven Decision-Making Can Go Wrong."