Image of Hubert Joly on the Innovation Show

The Heart of Business with Hubert Joly

Our guest today is a learner who courageously took on challenging turnaround roles in industries where he had no prior experience. He used his rigorous French education and elite training as a McKinsey consultant to lead five companies as CEO, culminating in the transformation of Best Buy.

During these years, he went through a personal transformation, from seeking to be the smartest person at the table to becoming a passionate and compassionate leader of people. By the time he became CEO of Best Buy in 2012, he had led turnarounds as head of EDS France, Vivendi’s video game division, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, and Carlson Companies.

Despite his achievements by his early forties he was feeling disillusioned from chasing success. This is what inspired him to take “a step back and spend time looking into his soul to find a better direction for his life.” In his study with Catholic monks and a number of CEOs in France, he realized that work is a noble calling to serve others and an expression of love.

He believes work must be guided by the pursuit of a purpose with people at its center. This conviction has shaped his life and his career. It is a great pleasure to welcome: Senior lecturer at Harvard Business School, former chairman and CEO of Best Buy, and author of, “The Heart of Business – Leadership Principles for the Next Era of Capitalism”, Hubert Joly

Find Hubert here:

https://youtu.be/UTS95OchFOE

Enron with Bethany McLean

The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron with Bethany McLean

In retrospect, Enron did not conceal their dubious transactions from the investing public, but Enron’s brass didn’t go out of their way to point them out, but for anyone willing to wade through the company’s financial documents, the numbers were clear.

We are joined today by a brilliant journalist who did that work, who asked the questions others did not, and whose work would expose one of the biggest scams of all time.

We welcome the author of “The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron”, Bethany McLean

Image of Rabbits Looking at Map of Carrots

Designing Ditches Is Not Digging Ditches: The Map is Not the Territory

The map is not the territory means that the description of something is not the reality of that something. The model is not reality, or in the context of this Thursday Thought, when a group of consultants who know very little about your organization design a strategy, it does not mean that strategy will succeed. In fact, because they do not know the inner workings of not only your industry, or the realities of the territory of your organization, coupled with the reality that they often do not include key people in designing the map, many consultants design bum maps. Is it any wonder that 75% of transformational efforts fail? (I always believe it is more because some organizations will not admit such failure)

Image of John Kotter

Change with John Kotter

Incremental improvement is no longer sufficient in helping organizations navigate the complexity, uncertainty, and volatility of today’s world.  Our guest today explores how to create non-linear, dramatic change in organizations. He explores the emerging science of change that teaches us about how to build organizations – from businesses to governments – that change and adapt rapidly.   It is great pleasure to welcome the author of “Change: How Organizations Achieve Hard-to-Imagine Results in Uncertain and Volatile Times”, John Kotter.

More about John: https://www.kotterinc.com

 

Getting Things Done with David Allen

Getting Things Done with David Allen

Our guest is widely recognized as the world’s leading expert on personal and organizational productivity. Time Magazine called today’s book, “the definitive business self-help book of the decade.”

We welcome the international best-selling author of “Getting Things Done: the Art of Stress-Free Productivity”, David Allen

Positive SSL