Idea posted: May 2014

Institutions: Seattle University Albers School of Business and Economics    Queens University School of Business    University of Manitoba Asper School of Business   

While a sense of humour can be an effective leadership tool, it depends on how that humour is used. Humour that targets or belittles followers undermines the leader’s influence. On…

Idea posted: June 2014

Institutions: Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University    Cranfield University School of Management   

Competing aggressively and repeatedly on price can threaten the future of companies. The losers of price wars have been known to go out of business, and the survivors to suffer…

Idea posted: July 2014

Institutions: University of Toronto Rotman School of Management   

A flinch is defined as any show of shock, disgust or disbelief in response to a first offer. Do flinches work for negotiators, or are they counterproductive, and end up…

Idea posted: May 2015

Institutions: NUS Business School    Georgia Institute of Technology Scheller College of Business    Rady School of Management   

Many project managers are now working with contract or distant employees who have some autonomy in how they plan out the assignment. These projects required highly skilled workers but often…

Idea posted: January 2020

Institutions: The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania    Columbia Business School    Harvard Business School   

Milton Friedman notwithstanding, maximizing profit (and thus shareholder value) is no longer considered the one and only purpose of a corporation or business. The truly successful business is driven by…

Idea posted: January 2023

Institutions: University of Reading    St. John’s University   

Foreign companies can be at a disadvantage when competing against domestic companies strengthened by informal networks developed over years and even lifetimes. In Korea, for example, two types of informal…

Idea posted: April 2024

Institutions: York University    WHU–Otto Beisheim School of Management    University of Western Australia    University of Mainz   

The evolving sophistication and scope of automation and AI technology will impact the jobs of individuals at all levels of the organization. For middle managers, automation can threaten to render…

Idea posted: July 2014

Institutions: Harvard Business School    Boston College Carroll School of Management   

The most basic business is product-based, involving the manufacturing, assembling and/or delivery of a product. A different type of business, once rare but becoming more and more common, is platform-based,…

Idea posted: September 2022

Institutions: Drucker School of Management    Claremont Graduate University   

Companies once viewed themselves as isolated entities engaged in win-lose battles with opponents for the same set of customers. The technology-driven evolution of business has re-ordered the universe. Today, companies…