- 16 Feb 2021
- Cold Call Podcast
Fostering Authenticity and Employee Engagement at John Deere
As the first Black female factory manager to lead a John Deere plant, Rosalind Fox must figure out how to build relationships with her staff, who are mostly white men. Harvard Business School senior lecturer Tony Mayo discusses the pressure on Fox to assimilate into the dominant culture, her decision to lean into her authentic self, and the deep connection between employee engagement and authenticity in his case, “Rosalind Fox at John Deere.” Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 16 Feb 2017
- Cold Call Podcast
Black Business Leaders Series: A Remarkable Legacy of Firsts, Maggie Lena Walker
Maggie Lena Walker used her leadership of the Independent Order of St. Luke to form a bank, newspaper, and department store—all in the stronghold of the Confederacy. Tony Mayo discusses his case study about this pioneering African American woman. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 25 Jun 2014
- Lessons from the Classroom
FIELD Trip: Conquering the Gap Between Knowing and Doing
Forget what you remember about school field trips. Harvard Business School is in its fourth year of a bold innovation that ships all first-year students on global excursions. FIELD leaders Alan MacCormack and Tony Mayo describe lessons learned so far. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 09 Nov 2009
- Research & Ideas
Come Fly with Me: A History of Airline Leadership
A new book looks at the history of the U.S. aviation industry through the eyes of its entrepreneurs, managers, and leaders—men like Pan Am's Juan Trippe and Southwest Airlines' Herb Kelleher—each emerging at different stages of the industry's evolution from start-up to rebirth. Who comes next? An interview with coauthor Anthony J. Mayo. Key concepts include: While disruptive forces can change an industry, so too can leaders themselves by the manner in which they run their enterprises. Different archetypes of leaders emerged as the U.S. airline industry evolved from start-up phase through deregulation and the shock of September 11, 2001. Airlines seem ripe for a new form of leadership to reenergize the industry. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 28 Aug 2008
- Sharpening Your Skills
Sharpening Your Skills: History Matters
Business history is a rich source of knowledge and inspiration for today's executives. Do we pay enough attention to the past? Here are four Working Knowledge articles that provide lessons from history about leaders, leadership, and business organization. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 08 Jan 2007
- Research & Ideas
Who Rises to Power in American Business?
Business leaders in the United States have usually been white men who were blessed with the right religion, family, or education. But "outsiders" have also created their own paths to leadership, a trend on the rise today. Paths to Power is the first book in fifty years to exhaustively analyze the demographics of leadership and access in business in the U.S., and how the face of American leadership might be changing. A Q&A with Anthony J. Mayo. Key concepts include: Paths to power in American business have followed two tracks: The inside track favors white males with the right connections. The outside path is forged by individuals who overcome significant odds to achieve success. Over the last seventy-five years, education has become more critical in creating a path to power; religion and family ties less so. Access to power appears to be widening. In the future, individuals who can operate and lead in a complex global world will be at an advantage in gaining leadership positions. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 03 Oct 2005
- Research & Ideas
The Truck Driver Who Reinvented Shipping
Malcolm P. McLean (1914-2001) hit on an idea to dramatically reduce labor and dock servicing time. An excerpt from In Their Time: The Greatest Business Leaders of the Twentieth Century by Harvard Business School's Anthony J. Mayo and Nitin Nohria. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 12 Apr 2004
- Research & Ideas
What Great American Leaders Teach Us
A new database on great American leaders offers surprising insights on the nature of leadership. A Q&A with Tony Mayo, executive director of the Harvard Business School Leadership Initiative. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
How Do Great Leaders Overcome Adversity?
In the spring of 2021, Raymond Jefferson (MBA 2000) applied for a job in President Joseph Biden’s administration. Ten years earlier, false allegations were used to force him to resign from his prior US government position as assistant secretary of labor for veterans’ employment and training in the Department of Labor. Two employees had accused him of ethical violations in hiring and procurement decisions, including pressuring subordinates into extending contracts to his alleged personal associates. The Deputy Secretary of Labor gave Jefferson four hours to resign or be terminated. Jefferson filed a federal lawsuit against the US government to clear his name, which he pursued for eight years at the expense of his entire life savings. Why, after such a traumatic and debilitating experience, would Jefferson want to pursue a career in government again? Harvard Business School Senior Lecturer Anthony Mayo explores Jefferson’s personal and professional journey from upstate New York to West Point to the Obama administration, how he faced adversity at several junctures in his life, and how resilience and vulnerability shaped his leadership style in the case, "Raymond Jefferson: Trial by Fire."