Apple has said no to FBI’s request to gain access to their walled garden. Governments make requests to companies like Twitter and Facebook to block posts that they define as inflammatory. The line between what one defines as freedom of expression and sedition is often blurred. Is Apple right in saying no to the government and is that in our best interest?
In BCG’s list of 50 most innovative companies of 2015, auto companies like Toyota, BMW, Daimler and Tesla compete with Apple, Google, Microsoft and Amazon for the top spots. Technology-enabled innovation cuts across industries. So suddenly tech talent has choice of joining any company they choose to.
Startups have open offices – mostly. Everyone from the twenty year old founder to the twenty one year old employees are all sitting around in open cubicles. It is a visible symbol of a non-hierarchical work culture. In a country where hierarchy is everywhere, this comes across like a breath of fresh air and becomes a great draw while hiring. But are they really productivity boosters (because the boss can keep an eye on you) or creativity enhancers?
Pursuing an unusual goal is not the sign of having a jagged resume. It is usually an accomplishment that makes you wonder, what motivated the person to take up the challenge. It usually is something that brings out the desire in a person to persist despite setbacks and hardships. The person may finally not even have succeeded. But it is quality of persistence that a jagged resume will show far more effectively than a regular resume.
I was always told when I was growing up that those who need style do it because they lack substance. Be good at your work and that is good enough. This belief is not true anymore. Both are important. Branding is really about “the truth told well” as a well-known agency used to say.
I remember meeting someone from the fashion industry who had explained to me the many shades of black that she could differentiate. All through that flight, my co-passenger educated me about the different shades — carbon black, ebony, charcoal black and outer space black, to name a few. The specialist can see the subtle differences while a novice like me would describe all of them as ‘black’. Maybe the same goes for the people agenda.
Disruption is a leadership phenomenon. Past success is the most effective predictor of future failure. Most disruption occurs not by making the wrong choices, as much as failing to choose at all. When the Ritz Carlton's head of training professes to be unaware of Airbnb, or when the publisher of a newspaper depicts future strategy in terms that disown past strategies we can begin to see the magnitude of the challenges ahead. What is needed is close to a complete reworking of our leadership model.
When a crisis of trust hits the organization, the public relations machinery swings into top gear and tries to tame the media before they go on a rampage. In this mayhem, it is easy to forget that the bruises and dents also affect the employer brand. The most valuable employees of the organization may worry about future prospects and jump ship. Potential candidates may think harder before joining the firm. I was with a food and beverage company during such a controversy. That crisis taught me powerful lessons on how to protect the employer brand during a crisis. Leaders need to address this from two perspectives – the head and the heart.
