Workers who come from lower social-class origins in the United States are 32% less likely to become managers than those who come from higher social-class origins. That represents a disadvantage even greater than the one experienced by women compared with men (27%) or Blacks compared with whites (25%). Social class disadvantage in the workplace prevails in every major economy around the world. In discriminating against people who come from a lower social class, we're discriminating against a majority of the work­force--a grossly harmful indulgence, especially when you consider what happens if you don't discriminate. According to the author's research, GDP is higher per capita in countries where more managers come from lower social-class origins. Companies pay a lot of attention to issues of gender and race, and for very good reason. In this article, the author argues that it's time to focus equally on social class disadvantage. In doing so, he notes, firms reinforce their efforts to combat other forms of disadvantage. He explores the root causes of the problem and lays out the most promising interventions that are emerging from research and practice to help remediate it.

When you're seeking to advance your career--by joining a different company or moving into a new role with your current employer--it's important to think strategically about not just what you want but how to get it. In this article the authors draw on their work coaching executives and their cross-cultural research to propose four steps that can help you prepare to negotiate. First, think broadly about your long-term career goals instead of focusing narrowly on the offer at hand or the question of pay and benefits. Second, be mindful of what type of opportunity you're asking for--something standard, an unusual arrangement for yourself, or a chance to take your organization in a new direction--and tailor your arguments accordingly. Third, arm yourself with the necessary information to reduce ambiguity about what's possible and with whom to negotiate. Fourth, connect with people who can be helpful in making your case, and approach negotiations as an opportunity to enhance your working relationships. If you follow these steps and set career targets that are specific and realistic, you're more likely to chart a path to success.

Products and services that rely on machine learning-computer programs that constantly absorb new data and adapt their decisions in response-don't always make ethical or accurate choices. Sometimes they cause investment losses, for instance, or biased hiring or car accidents. And as such offerings proliferate across markets, the companies creating them face major new risks. Executives need to understand and mitigate the technology's potential downside. Machine learning can go wrong in a number of ways. Because the systems make decisions based on probabilities, some errors are always possible. Their environments may evolve in unanticipated ways, creating disconnects between the data they were trained with and the data they're currently fed. And their complexity can make it hard to determine whether or why they made a mistake. A key question executives must answer is whether it's better to allow smart offerings to continuously evolve or to "lock" their algorithms and periodically update them. In addition, every offering will need to be appropriately tested before and after rollout and regularly monitored to make sure it's performing as intended.

By now most companies have committed to sustainability efforts--and yet many CFOs still see those efforts as a cost rather than a source of value. That makes it hard to unlock the internal financing needed to scale them up. The authors--the director and a senior scholar at the NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business--have developed the Return on Sustainability Investment (ROSI) analytic tool, which companies can use to measure the financial returns on their sustainability activities. Implementing ROSI is a five-step process. Companies should (1) identify their current sustainability strategies, (2) identify related changes in operational or management practices, (3) determine the resulting benefits, (4) quantify the benefits, and (5) calculate the monetary value. The savings and growth thus revealed can reach hundreds of millions of dollars; in large companies, it can be billions. Particularly now, as companies scrutinize budgets threatened by the Covid-19 pandemic, ROSI analysis can help CFOs improve organizational finances through sustainability investments that create value for investors, employees, customers, and the world at large.

Across society, volunteerism has been stagnant or trending slightly downward in recent years. In the corporate world, however, it has been on the rise. In fact, paid time off for volunteering is one of the few employee benefits that has increased significantly over the past five years. The benefits of well-designed corporate volunteer programs have been clearly established: They boost productivity, increase employee engagement, and improve hiring and retention, to name just a few. But too often, firms' programs fall short. In designing their volunteer programs, companies fall prey to common pitfalls: They blindly copy what other firms are doing, prioritize leaders' pet projects, or pressure employees to participate, essentially making volunteering mandatory. Such errors diminish the value of the programs to the company, employees, and society. Instead, firms should prioritize meaning, balance top-down structure with bottom-up passion, and seek to involve a variety of stakeholders in their initiatives.

By aligning executives' financial incentives with company strategy, a firm can inspire its management to deliver superior results. But it can be hard to get pay packages right. In this article four experts break down the key elements of compensation and explain how to put them together effectively. When designing packages, boards must make decisions about the proportion of fixed versus variable pay, short-term versus long-term incentives, cash versus equity, and group versus individual rewards. Many look at the copious data available on executive pay and benchmark their plans against those of their industry peers. The mix is also driven by company size, region, culture, and risk appetite. A good plan always begins with a firm's strategic goals, however. Is the company striving for profitable growth, a turnaround, or a transformation? Is it trying to compete with public companies as a private entity? Each scenario calls for a different plan design. The Covid-related economic crisis may also alter plans. If targets become unachievable, incentives will lose their power and need to be revised--offering firms a chance to incorporate measures that serve stakeholders' interests better.

Judging from how they're portrayed in the media, it would be easy to dismiss family businesses as hotbeds of power-playing, backstabbing, and favor-currying, ultimately destined to fail; think of the Murdochs and News Corp, or the Redstones and National Amusements, to name just two. But many family businesses have enjoyed success for decades, even centuries. The authors explore five aspects of ownership that are crucial to whether a family business thrives or perishes: the type of ownership (whether a sole owner, a partnership, or another arrangement); the governance structure; how "success" is defined; what information the owners will (and won't) communicate to other family members and stakeholders; and how to handle the transition to the next generation.

Extensive research shows that when employees get hands-on managerial support, they perform better than when they're left to their own devices, but unnecessary or unwanted help can be demoralizing and counterproductive. So how do you intervene constructively? The authors share three key lessons learned during 10 years of study: (1) Step in only when people are engaged in a challenging task and ready to accept help; (2) clarify that your role is to offer assistance, not take over the project or judge anyone; and (3) align the rhythm of your involvement to employees' needs, determining whether the situation calls for intensive guidance in the short term or intermittent path clearing over a prolonged period. These strategies are especially valuable for helping teams that are physically separated, as so many are during the current pandemic.

A manager grapples with the question of flexible work schedules. This fictional case study by Thomas J. DeLong features expert commentary by Elizabeth McKinnon and Rachel Thomas.

Two new books--"The Game Is Not a Game" and "Football's Fearless Activists"--offer some useful context for examining the current relationship between athletics and activism, from Colin Kaepernick's kneel to the NBA Bubble.

The iconic recording artist on courage, compassion, and resilience.

A manager grapples with the question of flexible work schedules. This fictional case study by Thomas J. DeLong features expert commentary by Elizabeth McKinnon and Rachel Thomas.

A manager grapples with the question of flexible work schedules. This fictional case study by Thomas J. DeLong features expert commentary by Elizabeth McKinnon and Rachel Thomas.

When 2020 began, the world was literally on fire, and things got worse from there. In a wide-ranging interview, best-selling author and Harvard Business School Professor Rebecca Henderson shares key insights from her latest book, Reimagining Capitalism in a World on Fire, which was short-listed for the Financial Times Business Book of the Year Award. After describing the key changes required to the capitalist system, including 'rewiring finance', she describes what each of us can do-as an employee, a consumer and a citizen-to shape the world for the better.

The authors-senior editors at Bloomberg News and The Economist-argue that the global pandemic has laid bare the weaknesses of Western societies. In an excerpt from their book of the same title, they share part of their recipe for reform. Among their recommended reforms are 'Stop Subsidizing the Rich and the Old', 'Reinvigorate Talent' and 'Unleash Technology'. While they focus on the U.S. in the book, their wake-up call can be applied to any western nation. In the end, they say, COVID-19 gives us an opportunity to re-think the design of our entire system-something that hasn't happened in decades.

The global pandemic is changing the way we eat, work, shop, exercise, manage our health, socialize and spend our free time-and the 'low-touch economy' is here to stay. Board of Innovation co-founder Nick De Mey describes how our society and the global economy have been permanently altered by COVID-19. In a wide-ranging interview, he argues that the pandemic is shaping a new era of consumer behavior, and that successful companies will be those who adapt their business models accordingly.

Faced with pandemic-related challenges and risks, business leaders are rightly concerned about how their companies will be affected by COVID-19 over the long term and what to do next. The global CEO of Deloitte describes how five fundamental leadership qualities can lessen the impact of the global pandemic - and enable an organization to emerge stronger. They include Put Your Mission First, Design from the Head and the Heart, and Aim for Speed Over Elegance. Going forward, he says clarity of thinking and communication will be at a premium, and leaders who can best exhibit this clarity will inspire their organizations to be prepared for whatever may come.

Conventional wisdom has held that business should keep a low profile on divisive political issues. Why risk drawing the ire of politicians, pundits, customers, shareholders or employees by wading into non-business concerns? And yet 72 per cent of Walmart customers now expect it to 'take a stand on important social issues' and 85 per cent agree that it should 'make it clear what values it stands for.' The paradigm is shifting, and in today's world, business leaders need to have expertise on both 'the gridiron' and 'the pitch'. The authors provide a 'playbook' for navigating this new territory, which includes empowering your team to communicate, adopting a readiness posture and playing the long game.

The world's biggest untapped source of energy isn't the wind, water or sun. According to the authors, who hail from innovation consultancy Innosight and DBS Bank, it is the innovative energy lying dormant inside of organizations. And the time has come to harness it. In an excerpt from their book, Eat, Sleep, Innovate: How to Make Creativity an Everyday Activity Inside Your Organization, they describe five behaviors that together define an innovative culture, including customer obsession, comfort with ambiguity and empowering employees.

The authors argue that the corporate world and the world that it serves are ready for the next evolution of corporate virtue: 'virtuous capital'. Annual budgets and sustainability reports provide some hints about a company's true character, they say, but there is something that is far more telling: capital commitments. They show how 'virtuous capital', as indicated on a balance sheet, speaks volumes as to a firm's long-range commitment to making the world a better place. They provide four avenues for leaders to focus on going forward, including risk reallocation, different forms of ownership and government incentives.