- 05 Nov 2007
- What Do You Think?
Why Is Succession So Badly Managed?
Online forum now closed. CEO and other leadership talent may be best developed within a firm rather than imported, says Jim Heskett. If such people—insiders with an outsider's perspective—provide answers to the need for such things as continuity, intimate knowledge of the organization, and a fresh look at the business, why don't we see more of them? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 04 Oct 2007
- What Do You Think?
Has Managerial Capitalism Peaked?
Summing Up. Professor Jim Heskett considers his reader's comments on the growing imbalance between what John Bogle terms managerial capitalism and owners' capitalism. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 07 Sep 2007
- What Do You Think?
Are Elite Business Schools Fostering the Deprofessionalization of Management?
Summing Up. The founders of top business schools wanted to make management a profession similar to law, medicine, and theology. But the results look different, according to a new book, From Higher Aims to Hired Hands, by HBS professor Rakesh Khurana. Now Jim Heskett asks: How, and to what extent, are business schools themselves contributing to the situation? Forum now closed. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 02 Aug 2007
- What Do You Think?
How Will Millennials Manage?
Gen Yers or "millennials"—those born beginning in the late 1970s—are generally bright, cheery, seemingly well-adjusted, and cooperative, says Jim Heskett. Their work styles are sometimes confounding, though. As managers, how will they shape organizations of the future? Online forum now closed. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 10 Jul 2007
- What Do You Think?
How Much of Leadership Is About Control, Delegation, or Theater?
Forum now closed. Summing up the many responses, Jim Heskett says that the mix of control, delegation, and theater employed by successful leaders depends on timing and circumstances. "The strongest messages I received were that if leadership involves control, it is only over setting an organization's course and priorities." Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 01 Jun 2007
- What Do You Think?
How Should Pay Be Linked to Performance?
Online forum now CLOSED. Professor Jim Heskett sums up 98 reader responses from around the world. As he concludes, is there another subject as important as this one about which we assume so much and know so little? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 04 May 2007
- What Do You Think?
How Do Managers Think?
"Uncertainty sometimes is essential for success" asserts a new book, How Doctors Think. The work of doctors raises intriguing questions about managing, says Jim Heskett, since diagnostics are an important part of managerial decision-making, too. Jim sums up nearly 60 responses from readers around the world, including practicing physicians. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 06 Apr 2007
- What Do You Think?
Will Market Forces Stop Global Warming?
HBS professor Jim Heskett sums up many creative responses from readers on the role of business in combatting global climate change. Online forum now closed. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 02 Mar 2007
- What Do You Think?
What Is the Government’s Role in US Health Care?
Healthcare will grab ever more headlines in the U.S. in the coming months, says Jim Heskett. Any service that is on track to consume 40 percent of the gross national product of the world's largest economy by the year 2050 will be hard to ignore. But are we addressing healthcare cost issues with the creativity they deserve? What do you think? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 02 Feb 2007
- What Do You Think?
Is There Too Little “Know Why” In Business?
There's know-how in business and then there's "know why." Purpose is a powerful motivator on many levels, says Jim Heskett. Can we aspire to a strong sense of "know why" even if our organization is not out to change the world? What do you think? Online forum now open. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 08 Jan 2007
- What Do You Think?
Neuro Economics: Science or Science Fiction?
The growing use of MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) devices for studying decision making means that in 2007 we may hear a number of striking conclusions based on studies involving a small number of brain scans, says Jim Heskett. What are the more general implications of this trend? Will it have strong explanatory as well as manipulative potential for us as consumers, managers, and citizens? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 01 Dec 2006
- What Do You Think?
How Important Is Quality of Labor? And How Is It Achieved?
A new book by Gregory Clark identifies "labor quality" as the major enticement for capital flows that lead to economic prosperity. By defining labor quality in terms of discipline and attitudes toward work, this argument minimizes the long-term threat of outsourcing to developed economies. By understanding labor quality, can we better confront anxieties about outsourcing and immigration? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 27 Nov 2006
- What Do You Think?
What’s to Be Done About Performance Reviews?
What can we do to make performance reviews more productive and less distasteful? Should their objectives be scaled back to just one or two? Should they be disengaged from the determination of compensation and, if so, how? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 11 Oct 2006
- What Do You Think?
How Do We Respond to the “Dependency Ratio” Dilemma?
Without knowing it, we have already heard a great deal about "dependency ratios." We can expect to hear a lot more, both at the level of nations and individual firms. What is the answer to a dilemma that we are going to be confronting more and more frequently? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 01 Sep 2006
- What Do You Think?
Are We Ready for Self-Management?
On its face, self-management looks like a "win-win" answer to the scarcity of good managers and the predominance of low-involvement entry-level jobs. But are sufficient numbers of entry-level employees ready for self-management? And is management ready? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 04 Aug 2006
- What Do You Think?
What Happens When the Economics of Scarcity Meets the Economics of Abundance?
The "Long Tail," a term coined by Chris Anderson—and the title of his new book—describes the item popularity curve. Does the Long Tail represent a paradigm shift for business and consumer behavior? What are its implications for management going forward? Key concepts include: Chris Anderson first coined the term "the Long Tail" in Wired magazine. In a long-tail world, everything digital is available at all times. Anderson describes three conditions critical to potential long-tail profits, all of which are provided by the Internet combined with creative new software and hardware. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 05 Jul 2006
- What Do You Think?
How Important Is “Executive Intelligence” for Leaders?
Leadership talent is enjoying a perceived "seller's market," says Jim Heskett. As we select and train future leaders for all levels of our organizations, how much effort do we really spend assessing executive intelligence as opposed to personality and style? What do YOU think? Key concepts include: According to Justin Menkes, executive intelligence is the ability to digest, often with the help of others, large amounts of information in order to form important decisions. Menkes says, "Personality is not a differentiator of star talent. It is an individual's facility for clear thinking or intelligence that largely determines their leadership success." What do you think is the relative importance of executive intelligence, style, and personality in effective leaders? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 29 May 2006
- What Do You Think?
How Important Is the “Service Sector Effect” on Productivity?
In the cost-driven U.S. service economy, are worker benefits being sacrificed in the name of lower-cost services to customers? Are these social costs more than offset by the benefits of job creation, the consumption stimulus that spurs job creation, and lower unemployment? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 01 May 2006
- What Do You Think?
Who Will Cast a Longer Shadow on the 21st Century: Friedman or Galbraith?
Both of these economists greatly influenced the political economics of the twentieth century. But what of this century? Which set of views will most shape the policies of governments and our way of life? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
What Is Management’s Role in Innovation?
Online forum closed. It's an open question whether management, as it is currently practiced, contributes much to creativity and innovation, says HBS professor Jim Heskett. What changes will allow managers, particularly in larger organizations, to add value to the creative process? What do you think? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.