Like many of you, I have followed the recent headlines related to Pope Benedict XVI's call for a "return to ethics in the global economy." I've been seeing this thinking in many arenas — and we cover it regularly on HOW Online — and I was meaningfully struck by his desire to see business reconnect with values in these troubled times, says HOW contributor Dov Seidman.
More »GM has been in the headlines lately for how they operate. Critics cite their "insular" culture as being out of touch, and the government is demanding that GM transform its corporate culture to become more competitive. That's why GM's leaders should think about leaning into the source of sustainable value in the world of 21st century business: corporate culture, says Dov Seidman.
More »Much attention has been paid to the sentencing of Bernard Madoff, and rightfully so. His behavior was monstrous. But when we talk about the times we're living in, we do ourselves a disservice if we pay too much attention to the former NASDAQ chairman who pulled off one of the largest investor frauds of all time, says Dov Seidman.
More »Mellon Bank Corp, British band Radiohead and my company, LRN, have all been on a “TRIP” — an acronym for how Trust enables Risk, which propels Innovation and, ultimately, leads to Progress. The recession now provides a valuable opportunity for companies to adapt to the dynamics of 21st century business by going on a TRIP.
More »"Do not underestimate what seeds can get planted when American leaders don’t just propagate their values, but visibly live them."
— Thomas Friedman
A recent interview between Pulitzer Prize winning New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman and President Obama, detailed in a column, provides a lesson in something we talk about often at HOW Online: inspirational leadership. Namely, that engaging an audience in a truthful, transparent manner can build trust when leaders live their values.
More »"[A strong culture] informs all stakeholders about what to expect."
— Selena Maranjian,
The Motley Fool
A company’s corporate culture is so important because it "reflects a firm's identity in the world … [and] reassures employees and informs prospective employees," says Selena Maranjian in a recent Motley Fool column. And especially today, a strong culture is valuable to those inside, and outside, the company doors.
More »"For you, the leader, it's the difference between frustrating exhaustion and inspired collaboration."
— Peter Bregman
While a leader’s job is to influence others’ behavior, this effort is made more difficult because people can innately resist change and control, says Peter Bregman in a recent Harvard Business Publishing column. So how should leaders avoid resistance altogether? Give employees control. Let them make decisions, he says.
More »
Andrew Shapiro,
Founder, GreenOrder
President Barack Obama has taken bold steps to change America's direction on energy and the environment. But can he rise to the challenge in the green arena? No matter how admirable his achievements on green spending, policy and personnel, success will require inspirational leadership that drives bottom-up change, says HOW contributor Andrew Shapiro.
More »
Taking the opposite side can be popular, but is it the right thing to do? asks HOW contributor Thomas M. Kostigen. People are divided across the political, business and cultural spectrum. This is a dangerous divide, and it needs to be fixed. We are supposed to be the United States of America — not the Divided States of America.
More »"Rules alone won’t create an ethical culture, but an ethical culture makes it easy and natural to obey the rules."
— Rushworth Kidder
It looks like financial institutions are surging toward re-regulation — “but unless the new rules are set in a context of corporate integrity, they could make things worse,” says Rushworth Kidder in a recent commentary. That's why we need to match regulatory advances with efforts to promote ethics in the marketplace by building cultures of integrity.
More »