g-f(2)2184 The CEO's Playbook: Mastering Leadership in a World of Intersecting Crises

 

genioux Fact post by Fernando Machuca and Claude

Introduction:

In an increasingly chaotic world marked by multiple, intersecting crises, leaders face the daunting task of navigating their organizations through turbulent waters. The article "Leading a Company That Can Thrive in a Chaotic World" from Harvard Business Review offers valuable insights from a group of CEOs on how to lead effectively amid ongoing uncertainty and enable their organizations to thrive in this challenging environment.

genioux GK Nugget:

"To thrive in a chaotic world, leaders must possess inner strength, character, and a moral compass, continually adapting and learning to navigate their organizations through turbulent waters." — Thomas Buberl, Bill George, Hubert Joly, and Nitin Nohria, Harvard Business Review, April 01, 2024

genioux Foundational Fact:

Leaders must aim higher than simply withstanding or responding to seemingly never-ending shocks. Although playing defense may be necessary, it's not sufficient on its own. Leaders must instead ensure their organizations can thrive in this new environment by taking care of themselves, leading with values, seeing opportunities, rethinking their higher purpose, redefining winning, and creating energy.

The 10 most relevant genioux Facts:

1. Leaders must take care of their own physical, mental, and spiritual health to build organizational resilience and create a caring environment for employees.
2. Anchoring leadership around core values and principles provides stability in a volatile environment.
3. Challenging situations offer opportunities, which can be discovered by listening to customers and frontline employees.
4. External shocks can prompt leaders to rethink their company's purpose and address fundamental human needs.
5. Redefining what it means to "win" in the new environment is crucial, as employees increasingly value their company's impact on the world.
6. Leaders must become chief energizing officers, lifting everyone's energy and unlocking their organization's potential.
7. Creating an open, energizing environment where innovation can flourish is essential for thriving in a chaotic world.
8. Leaders should develop an inspiring vision, craft a winning strategy, and create an operating environment where it is safe to speak about performance issues and easy to get help from others.
9. Encouraging employees to experiment, learn from failures, and collaborate across boundaries fosters a growth mindset and empathy.
10. Continual adaptation and learning enable organizations to navigate ever-turbulent waters.

Conclusion:

The article "Leading a Company That Can Thrive in a Chaotic World" offers valuable guidance for leaders seeking to navigate their organizations through the multiple, intersecting crises that characterize our current environment. By focusing on self-care, values-based leadership, opportunity-seeking, purpose-driven strategies, redefining success, and energizing their organizations, leaders can build the resilience and adaptability necessary to thrive in a chaotic world. Ultimately, leaders with inner strength, character, and a moral compass who continually adapt and learn will be best positioned to steer their organizations through turbulent waters and emerge stronger on the other side.

REFERENCE

The g-f GK Article

Thomas Buberl, Bill George, Hubert Joly, and Nitin Nohria, Leading a Company That Can Thrive in a Chaotic World, Harvard Business Review, April 1, 2024.

Classical Summary:

In the Harvard Business Review article "Leading a Company That Can Thrive in a Chaotic World," authors Thomas Buberl, Bill George, Hubert Joly, and Nitin Nohria discuss the challenges faced by leaders in navigating their organizations through the multiple, intersecting crises that characterize the current global environment. Drawing on insights from a group of American and European CEOs, the authors argue that leaders must aim higher than simply withstanding or responding to these seemingly never-ending shocks and instead ensure their organizations can thrive in this new environment.

The article presents six key strategies for leaders to achieve this goal. First, leaders must take care of themselves, recognizing that their own physical, mental, and spiritual well-being is essential for building organizational resilience and creating a caring environment for employees. Second, leaders should anchor their leadership around core values and principles, providing stability in a volatile environment. Third, leaders must actively seek out opportunities amid challenging situations by listening to customers and frontline employees.

Fourth, external shocks can prompt leaders to rethink their company's purpose and address fundamental human needs, as demonstrated by the examples of AXA and Medtronic. Fifth, leaders should redefine what it means to "win" in the new environment, as employees increasingly value their company's impact on the world beyond traditional financial metrics. Finally, leaders must become chief energizing officers, lifting everyone's energy and unlocking their organization's potential by creating an open, collaborative environment where innovation can flourish.

The article emphasizes the importance of continual adaptation and learning for leaders to navigate their organizations through ever-turbulent waters. It highlights the need for leaders to develop an inspiring vision, craft a winning strategy, and create an operating environment where it is safe to speak about performance issues and easy to get help from others. Furthermore, encouraging employees to experiment, learn from failures, and collaborate across boundaries fosters a growth mindset and empathy, which are crucial for thriving in a chaotic world.

In conclusion, the authors stress that organizations need leaders with inner strength, character, and a moral compass to thrive in this chaotic new world. By continually adapting and learning, these leaders will enable their organizations to navigate the ongoing challenges and emerge stronger on the other side.

Thomas Buberl 

Thomas Buberl is the Chief Executive Officer and Director of AXA¹. He holds a Master of Economics degree from WHU Koblenz (Germany), an MBA from Lancaster University (UK), and a PhD in Economics from the University of St Gallen (Switzerland)¹. 

Buberl began his career as a consultant at the Boston Consulting Group for the banking & insurance sector¹. He joined the Winterthur Group in 2005 (acquired by AXA in 2006), first as Chief Operating Officer and then as Chief Marketing and Distribution Officer¹. He moved to Zurich Insurance Group in 2008 as Chief Executive Officer for Switzerland¹.

At the beginning of 2012, Buberl was appointed Chief Executive Officer of AXA Konzern AG (Germany) and member of the AXA Executive Committee¹. In March 2015, he also joined the AXA Management Committee and became Chief Executive Officer of the global health business line and, in January 2016, of the global life & savings business line¹. Since September 1, 2016, Buberl has been Chief Executive Officer and director of AXA¹.

He is also a director or member of the Supervisory Board at Bertelsmann VerwaltungsGesellschaft (BVG) (Germany), IBM (United States), and holds directorships outside the AXA Group¹.

Source: Conversation with Bing, 4/7/2024

(1) thomas-buberl | AXA. https://www.axa.com/en/about-us/profile/thomas-buberl.

(2) Leading a Company That Can Thrive in a Chaotic World. https://hbr.org/2024/04/leading-a-company-that-can-thrive-in-a-chaotic-world.

(3) Thomas Buberl, AXA | Insurance Business America. https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/us/best-insurance/pp/400050/.

(4) Thomas Buberl - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Buberl.

(5) en.wikipedia.org. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Buberl.

Bill George

Bill George is a professor at Harvard Business School and the author of "True North: Emerging Leader Edition"¹². He is a renowned leadership expert and is recognized as one of the top 50 management thinkers in the world¹. 

In "True North: Emerging Leader Edition", George, along with Millennial tech entrepreneur Zach Clayton, challenges emerging leaders to lead their organizations authentically through never-ending crises to make this world a better place for everyone¹². The book guides emerging leaders to discover their "True North"—who they are—and then find their "North Star"—their leadership purpose¹². It shows emerging leaders how to lead with their hearts, not just their heads, with passion, compassion, and moral courage by being true to their values to reach their full potential¹².

The book is filled with dramatic stories from successful leaders such as Microsoft’s Satya Nadella and Merck’s Ken Frazier to PepsiCo’s Indra Nooyi and General Motors’ Mary Barra, and emerging leaders like OneTrust’s Kabir Barday and Kanbrick’s Tracy Britt Cool¹⁵. It offers concrete suggestions for becoming an authentic leader, equipped to lead inclusively with moral clarity through challenges and crises¹².

Source: Conversation with Bing, 4/7/2024

(1) True North: Emerging Leader Edition | Bill George. https://billgeorge.org/book/true-north-emerging-leader-edition.

(2) True North, Emerging Leader Edition: Leading Authentically in ... - Wiley. https://www.wiley.com/en-us/True+North%2C+Emerging+Leader+Edition%3A+Leading+Authentically+in+Today%27s+Workplace-p-9781119886105.

(3) True North Free Summary by Bill George and Zach Clayton - getAbstract. https://www.getabstract.com/en/summary/true-north/46159.

(4) True North, Emerging Leader Edition: Leading Authentica…. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62217584-true-north-emerging-leader-edition.

(5) True North, Emerging Leader Edition, 3rd Edition [Book] - O'Reilly Media. https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/true-north-emerging/9781119886105/.

Hubert Joly

Hubert Joly is a Senior Lecturer at Harvard Business School and the former Chairman and CEO of Best Buy¹. He is recognized for orchestrating the remarkable turnaround of Best Buy¹⁶. Joly is also the author of "The Heart of Business – Leadership Principles for the Next Era of Capitalism", a Wall Street Journal Bestseller published by Harvard Business Review Press¹⁶. 

In his book, Joly shares the leadership principles that underpinned the resurgence of Best Buy and that he believes are at the heart of business: pursue a noble purpose, put people at the center, create an environment where every employee can blossom, and treat profit as an outcome, not the goal¹⁶. His approach to leadership is about unleashing "human magic" and achieving improbable results¹⁶.

Before his tenure at Best Buy, Joly was the president, CEO, and director of Carlson, a global hospitality and travel conglomerate based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, US³. He is known for his transformational leadership style and his belief in the power of purpose and humanity in business¹⁶.

Source: Conversation with Bing, 4/7/2024

(1) Hubert Joly - Faculty & Research - Harvard Business School. https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/profile.aspx?facId=520131.

(2) The Heart of Business: Leadership Principles for the Next Era of .... https://www.hubertjoly.org/book/.

(3) Hubert Joly - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubert_Joly.

(4) Former Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly: Empowering Workers to Create ‘Magic’. https://hbr.org/2021/12/former-best-buy-ceo-hubert-joly-empowering-workers-to-create-magic.

(5) Hubert Joly — Leadership Matters. https://www.leadershipmattersshow.com/episodes/hubert-joly.

(6) A Brief Summary of “The Heart of Business” by Hubert Joly. https://medium.com/@natalionstallion/a-brief-summary-of-the-heart-of-business-by-hubert-joly-e6be4543cff2.

(7) The Heart of Business with Hubert Joly. https://som.yale.edu/blog/the-heart-of-business-with-hubert-joly.

(8) Leadership Principles for the Next Era of Capitalism. https://boardmember.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/HEART-OF-BUSINESS-Hubert-Joly.pdf.

(9) The Heart of Business Summary of Key Ideas and Review | Hubert Joly .... https://www.blinkist.com/en/books/the-heart-of-business-en.

Nitin Nohria 

Nitin Nohria is the George F. Baker Jr. Professor at Harvard Business School and the former dean of HBS¹. He served as the tenth dean of Harvard Business School from 2010 to 2020¹. Prior to his deanship, he held several other positions at Harvard Business School, including co-chair of the Leadership Initiative, Senior Associate Dean of Faculty Development, and Head of the Organizational Behavior unit¹.

Nohria's research focuses on human motivation, corporate transformation and accountability, and sustainable economic and human performance¹. He is known for his extensive research on leadership, which led him to conclude that the hallmark of great leadership is the ability to adapt to the times².

In addition to his academic work, Nohria has authored several books on leadership and management, including "The Handbook for Teaching Leadership: Knowing, Doing, and Being", "Handbook of Leadership Theory and Practice", and "Paths to Power: How Insiders and Outsiders Shaped American Business Leadership" among others¹.

Source: Conversation with Bing, 4/7/2024

(1) Nitin Nohria - Faculty & Research - Harvard Business School. https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/profile.aspx?facId=6523.

(2) As the World Shifts, So Should Leaders - Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2022/07/as-the-world-shifts-so-should-leaders.

(3) Nitin Nohria - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitin_Nohria.

(4) What the Case Study Method Really Teaches - Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2021/12/what-the-case-study-method-really-teaches.

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