Cynthia is a newly hired software developer at MainFrame, which uses Scrum to manage projects. But she agrees with her coworkers that the company's methodical and deliberate pace is inferior to the quicker, more loosely structured approach of her previous employer, which used Flow. So when a colleague approaches her and asks her to use her impressive background and credentials to advocate for Flow, Cynthia agrees. But after her pilot project produces mixed results, she wonders whether she should proceed with a presentation to the process-improvement board. Two experts weigh in: Sonali Raut, a senior data scientist at Munich RE Automation Solutions, and Alex Estevam, a technical program manager at Mastercard.
Cynthia is a newly hired software developer at MainFrame, which uses Scrum to manage projects. But she agrees with her coworkers that the company's methodical and deliberate pace is inferior to the quicker, more loosely structured approach of her previous employer, which used Flow. So when a colleague approaches her and asks her to use her impressive background and credentials to advocate for Flow, Cynthia agrees. But after her pilot project produces mixed results, she wonders whether she should proceed with a presentation to the process-improvement board. Two experts weigh in: Sonali Raut, a senior data scientist at Munich RE Automation Solutions, and Alex Estevam, a technical program manager at Mastercard.
Age really is just a number! In a wide-ranging interview, the Wharton School's Vice Dean argues that there is nothing naturally preordained about what we should be doing at different ages. The sequential model of life (school, work, retirement) is nothing but a social and political construction, he says. The confluence of rising life expectancy, enhanced physical and mental fitness and technology-driven knowledge and interaction fundamentally alter dynamics over the entire life course, redefining what we can do at different ages. As a result, a 'post-generational' society is emerging comprising 'Perennials' - people who are not characterized by the decade in which they were born. The result: more opportunities for people of all ages to change course, take gap years and reinvent themselves. Those who understand the potential of the Perennial mindset, says Guillen, will enter a new era of unrestricted living, learning, working and consuming.
While generative AI tools like ChatGPT have grabbed headlines, many leaders continue to view such tools as a mere novelty. That is a mistake, says the author. Behind the scenes, organizations are experimenting with 'foundation models,' adapting them for tasks ranging from powering customer service bots to generative product design to automated coding. As these models broaden and extend what we can do with AI, they are enabling companies to transform human-AI interaction and build an entirely new generation of AI applications and services. To leverage these models to drive novel business solutions, companies need to understand their strengths and capabilities and track how they are advancing. The author provides a primer, explaining how foundation models will drive new data practices and transform the nature of knowledge sharing in organizations.
Workplace burnout has become a global concern. In a recent survey, 77 per cent of working people said they had experienced burnout at their current job, while a whopping 91 per cent said unmanageable stress or frustration impacts the quality of their work. Not surprisingly, this has negative implications for employee effectiveness. The author describes his recent research, which reveals that emotional exhaustion usually increases throughout the workday and that these trajectories are influenced by a variety of factors, including previous-night detachment from work and socialization with colleagues. The good news is this: by understanding the variables that relate to growth curves in emotional exhaustion, organizations can design interventions targeting the design of work, social and structural aspects of the environment, and the training of employees on adaptive coping behaviours.
Automated systems: We can't live with them and we can't live without them. AI technology in the wrong hands is inarguably dangerous; but in the right hands it can be beneficial to all. This, say the authors, is the AI dilemma. In this excerpt from their book of the same title, they summarize four 'logics of power' that must be integrated in order for humanity to benefit from AI: engineering logic, social-justice logic, corporate logic and government logic. They show that AI systems consistently raise significant, complex problems that will not simply resolve themselves, and that having diversity of thought and perspective weighing in on these matters is incredibly important. If we want trustworthy AI systems, they conclude, we need to bring all four perspectives together, keep them in mind simultaneously, and make the effort to understand why others feel and think the way they do.
As a digital value-management tool, the blockchain is often considered to be the financial infrastructure for the digital economy. Unsurprisingly, lending and borrowing markets have emerged within this ecosystem. Initially, centralized services led by trading platforms dominated the market, followed by decentralized solutions that use the blockchain's ability to execute code. The authors share findings from their research, which explored how incentive programs offered by lending protocols to attract users are impacting the deposits and loans. Among their key findings: While 'liquidity mining' programs effectively draw activity to their platforms, a considerable fraction of that activity is 'phantom'-created by users that are exploiting rewards from both sides of the market.
More than one third of new investors use social media to research investment advice. If such advice is independently produced by a variety of different contributors, it can benefit investors, because research shows that averaging independent judgments generally improves accuracy. This is known as 'the wisdom-of-the-crowd effect.' However, social media platforms disseminate information using engagement algorithms that are influenced by popularity bias. The authors share findings from their research, which reveals that information on social media displays excessive optimism about future outcomes on earnings announcements and leads to price run-ups.
In the developed world, we have a far greater environmental impact than people in the developing world. But there is great political pressure in the developing world to increase material wealth, which will lead to increased environmental impact. That according to Steven A. Cohen, director of Columbia University's Earth Institute. In a wide-ranging interview he argues that the world's political stability and security depend on the maintenance of material wealth where it exists and economic growth where citizens are poor. But to achieve these goals, we construct an economy that does not destroy our planet's ecosystems. The good news, says Cohen, is that we have the capacity to develop methods of production and consumption that are less damaging to the planet-and create a circular economy in which all materials are reused rather than discarded. This transition has already begun, he says. We just need to speed up our progress.
The expression "think before you speak" brings up a question that this technical note answers: What should someone think about before communicating as a leader? This note recommends taking an audience-centered approach. Through a short vignett
David Den Herder and Jamal Aqel, equal partners of Marceco Ltd., a national U.S. prepaid wireless distributor of Boost Mobile and a Sprint (now T-Mobile) retailer, headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan needed to make a divestiture decision. From a 'kitchen-table' business started in 1995, Marceco experienced exponential growth through organic, inorganic, and hybrid strategies to become a firm with US$710 million in revenues, over 1,800 business-to-business (B2B) Boost Mobile retail locations, and over 100 owned and operated T-Mobile retail locations in 2020. T-Mobile required Marceco to choose between its two divisions and had a strong exclusivity clause to impose this requirement. Den Herder and Aqel needed to decide which of Marceco's divisions to divest: the business-to-consumer (B2C) division, representing T-Mobile, or the business-to-business (B2B) division, representing Boost Mobile, acquired by DISH Network after the merger. Both divisions were operating well internally and had growth opportunities, but each one was with carriers that became direct competitors after the T-Mobile-Sprint merger's approval. Since selling both divisions was not a consideration, in order to decide what division to divest, which carrier is potentially better to partner with, and which division is more strategic to Marceco's bottom line?
Executive Director Nicole Fuhsel faced a difficult decision: Was she going to take a more resource-light approach and do the bare minimum to simply meet legal requirements for health and safety at the company, or take a more resource-heavy approach to develop a program that truly supported the health and safety of staff and satisfied her personal drive to 'go above and beyond'. With limited resources available (time, people, money) and negative implications inherent in both options, the decision will be difficult to make. The case provides an outline of LINX business operations - a not for profit disability service organization that is heavily reliant on government grants, Nicole Fuhsel's background, and the current state of the safety program and staff-focused safety issues. There is no direct timeline or due date pressing upon Fuhsel. The Government of Alberta has already suggested that LINX' program is minimally sufficient and therefore there is not a legal compliance rationale to further develop the program. The question is whether Fuhsel decides to invest scarce resources to making improvements to the program to better support the safety of her staff and satisfy her personal drive for program excellence, or leaves the program as it is.
ENGINO Toys is a decision-oriented case which is set in Cyprus (EU) at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. The main protagonist is Costas Sisamos, the owner and Managing Director of ENGINO, Cyprus-based producer of STEM-oriented construction toys. In April 2020, the owner was overwhelmed by the disruptive shock caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and was wondering how he should react to this business challenge, and whether the orders from international distributors were delayed simply due to the pandemic or was this a sign of a coming collapse of his business model. Using distributors was a well-established practice in the toys business, but for over a year now Costas Sisamos had worried if that was the right business model for the future. His thoughts leapt to the idea of a STEM subscription box which had been in the back of his mind for some time. With rapid changes happening in the toy industry, the owner felt that he needed to consider new directions and new strategies. Coincidentally, there came an opportunity to bid for a local research grant. The owner was looking to answer three questions: "Will the STEM Box be profitable, and will the subscription project breakeven in year 2, as ideally expected? How do the financial projections fit into the overall strategic assessment? Based on the analysis, shall ENGINO proceed with subscriptions or not?"
In November 2022 the program coordinator for digital innovation projects at Europe's largest port, in Rotterdam (Port), wanted to invest in new systems that could synchronize several modes of container transportation (e.g., river, rail, road) in real time. Governance bodies at all levels (Port, City, State, European Union) had expressed interest in digital platforms for this purpose, but a key obstacle was that many of the Port partners refused to share real-time data that were essential for refining algorithms that would control synchromodal capabilities on a transport platform. This was one of several obstacles to synchronizing transport modes (which could greatly improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Port's logistics operations). In a meeting of logistics consortium representatives, this program's coordinator and other leaders discussed the opportunities and challenges involved in synchromodal transport. The case protagonist - Beatrix Linssen - soon after this meeting end, would need to present a report to her superiors and colleagues, discussing why it was necessary and desirable to invest in an IT - enabled synchromodal transport capability, and recommend how to go about doing this (despite that partners will never share the required data).
Despite ten years of building out the impact investing ecosystem-which included supporting and investing in for-profit, positive impact businesses in private markets; developing an extensive network of impact entrepreneurs, investors, and experts; contributing to the exchange of knowledge and best practices in the industry; and providing increasing opportunities for impact-focused investors-the team at Chicago-based Impact Engine was just getting started. Constantly raising the bar for themselves and the industry as a whole was ingrained in the firm's ethos. Indeed, the women-founded, women-led, and women-governed impact investment firm, which was founded as one of the first impact-oriented accelerators in the U.S., had grown to include early stage and private equity investments-all optimizing financial and social returns. The range of investment stages, however, presented new challenges to impact measurement, which the team viewed as an opportunity to reexamine its existing approach and incorporate best practices across the industry.
APA Technologies, a startup in the trucking industry, faced a significant challenge with its innovative product, the Tyro - an automatic tire inflation device. Founders Brad Miller and Jeffrey Howell, Stanford mechanical engineering students, developed Tyro to enhance safety and reduce maintenance costs in commercial trucking. However, they encountered a critical ethical and strategic decision when a potential design flaw was identified, presenting a safety risk. This dilemma tested their commitment to product integrity and customer safety. The case study details APA Technologies' journey from inception to facing this pivotal decision. Highlighting their user-centric design approach and rigorous testing procedures, it reflects on the company's ethos of prioritizing product quality and safety. The founders' philosophy of continuous improvement through customer feedback and iterative development is underscored. The narrative explores the implications of the recall decision, not just financially, but also in terms of customer trust and company reputation. It presents the founders' analysis of the risks and benefits, reflecting the complexities of ethical decision-making in a competitive business landscape. Additionally, the case study delves into strategic challenges such as managing financial strains, navigating market penetration, and considering partnerships. It illustrates the balance between innovation, ethics, and strategic growth in the tech startup ecosystem.
APA Technologies, a startup in the trucking industry, faced a significant challenge with its innovative product, the Tyro - an automatic tire inflation device. Founders Brad Miller and Jeffrey Howell, Stanford mechanical engineering students, developed Tyro to enhance safety and reduce maintenance costs in commercial trucking. However, they encountered a critical ethical and strategic decision when a potential design flaw was identified, presenting a safety risk. This dilemma tested their commitment to product integrity and customer safety. The case study details APA Technologies' journey from inception to facing this pivotal decision. Highlighting their user-centric design approach and rigorous testing procedures, it reflects on the company's ethos of prioritizing product quality and safety. The founders' philosophy of continuous improvement through customer feedback and iterative development is underscored. The narrative explores the implications of the recall decision, not just financially, but also in terms of customer trust and company reputation. It presents the founders' analysis of the risks and benefits, reflecting the complexities of ethical decision-making in a competitive business landscape. Additionally, the case study delves into strategic challenges such as managing financial strains, navigating market penetration, and considering partnerships. It illustrates the balance between innovation, ethics, and strategic growth in the tech startup ecosystem.