Rivalry whets our appetite for risk Leaders can icnrease or decrease feeling of rivaly. The authoers aruge that when you want bold moves, you should increase the feeling of rivalry (e.g., pitting evenly matched employees against eachother). When you want to avoid mistakes, leaders should see to dampen rivalry. How did the CEO of Survey […]
Tag Archives: innovation
September
01
What you could learn from ‘Value Proposition Design’ (2014, 272 pages)
posted by Max
Whether you need to design a brand new product or compete in an existing market, the key to success is developing a product is that fulfills a customer need in such as way that customers are willing you pay you more than your costs.
March
10
What you could learn from “The Art of Innovation” by Tom Kelly (2001, 297pages)
posted by Max
“The problem is not that big companies don’t see change coming, it is just that they fail to decide what to do about it and/or fail to execute their plan.” IDEO is now one of the world’s top design consultancies. IDEO’s success includes the first Apple mouse and the Plam V. Tom Kelley, the founder […]
January
19
What you could learn from ‘HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2017’ (2016, 200 pages)
posted by Max
Each year HBR publishes its most popular articles in a single book. The type of articles and the topics they cover are a bellwether for what academics and global business leaders find important. In the latest edition, the articles focus on data analytics, design thinking and innovation. Below, I have briefly summarised what I felt where the most […]
November
04
What you could learn from ‘The Strategy Book’ by Max McKeown (2012, 226 pages)
posted by Max
“Strategy is about moving from where you are to where you want to be. Smart strategy is the shortest route to desirable ends with available means.” Max McKeown Strategy, historically a Greek military term (see below), is now used very loosely to describe any plan of action to achieve a long term aim (see here). In […]
October
24
What you could learn from ‘The Innovation Book’ by Max McKeown (2014, 245 pages)
posted by Max
What is innovation? How do you and your company become more innovative? How do you lead and manage creative people? How to you turn your companies best ideas into reality? All of these questions are challenging for leaders in large organisations. Max McKeown’s ‘The Innovation Book’ is an excellent resource to help you answer these […]
October
21
Leadership hack 013 – balancing exploitation with exploration
posted by Max
Success only lasts so long. If you, or your company, are successful others will imitate, and competition will erode your advantage. Therefore, to remain successful, you need to capitalise on your current success, and use then redeploy the resources from this success and invest them where they while hopefully generate future growth. Exploitation is defined as ‘the action […]
October
11
What you could learn from ‘On Innovation’ from HBR (2013, 171 pages)
posted by Max
If you do not update your business model and your products the market will conspire to erode your profitability as your products will descend down the life-cycle to their demise. This decline can be stopped. By renewing both your product and your business model, you can ensure that you remain competitive (see below). Therefore, this act […]
September
12
What you could learn from Frugal Innovation: How to do better with less by Navi Radjou & Jaideep Prabhu (2016, 220 pages)
posted by Max
Everyone wants to be seen as innovative. Innovation has been one of the top business buzz words over the last few years. Once the preserve of multination corporations and their huge Research & Development (R&D) Labs, innovation has been transformed by technology firms and startups who are able to innovate faster, and with fewer resources. […]
September
03
What you can learn from ‘BCG On Strategy’ by Carl Stern and Michael Deimler (2006, 403pages)
posted by Max
Strategy, like leadership, is a contested topic. The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) has a long history of innovation in strategy consulting, having been the powerhouse behind the growth share matrix, the experience curve, time-based competition and the rule of three and four. Perspectives, BCG’s publication, seeks to expose their latest thinking both within the company […]
April
16
What you could learn from ‘Quick and Nimble’ by Adam Bryant (2014, 251 pages)
posted by Max
“Innovation distinguishes between leaders and follower.” Steve Jobs Innovation is one of the strongest sources of competitive advantage. Staying ahead of the competition allows you to explore new products, services, and business models while also making sure you are exploiting your existing offering. Adam Bryant offers 16 well thought and well-crafted pieces of advice […]
April
12
What could you learn from ‘Team of Teams: New Rules of Engagement for a Complex World’ by Gen Stanley McChrystal (2015, 304 pages)
posted by Max
General Stanley McChristal has a phenomenal reputation amongst veterans. His new book ‘Team of Teams’ charts his experience commanding the Special Operations Task Force in Iraq. Stanley pointedly highlights the initial problems when arrives. He inherits a slow, top-down, bureaucratic organisation that is failing. The book then charts the evolution of the Task Force into […]
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