Insights From

Modern Global Leadership

Ethical Leaders: Holding Teams Together in Adversity

Leadership matters more in challenging times. How does a team’s captain preserve confidence and commitment to the group, even when performance dips? New research shows that successful team dynamics may have a good deal to do with ethical leadership.

Struggling With Change? How Individuals (and Businesses) Can Learn Adaptability

New year, new you? Flipping the calendar has become a cliché for goals, resolutions, intentions and self-improvement. The Batten Institute’s Sean Carr speaks with Professor Ed Hess to share how we can all simply be better at changing.

Corporate Culture: Obtaining Excellence

Building a successful organization requires more than hiring smart people with the right skills. It also requires a mutual sense of purpose — a strong company culture. Even before COVID-19, that was no small task. Darden experts weigh in on frameworks for improving the quality of culture, as well as building the kind that benefits all involved.

6 Global Business Lessons From Ki Aikido: Energy and Strategy

an businesses learn from Eastern philosophies? Major names like Disney, Dollar General and Men’s Health have implemented principles of Ki Aikido to great success. Professor Bourgeois discusses the concept of ki and the six lessons on energy and strategy one may glean from Kōichi Tōhei’s simple, profound “Principles of Mind and Body Unification.”

Hoshin Kanri: A Management Tool for Continuous Improvement

Hoshin Kanri is effective strategy deployment without a bureaucratic air but with a commitment to continuous improvement. Elliott Weiss and Austin English describe the simple construct that increases engagement at all levels, detailing general concepts, basic steps, and keys to successful implementation and iteration.

Cat or Meerkat Culture? Religious Identity Threats at Work

A feeling that part of one’s identity is unwelcome at work threatens an employee’s connection with others and the organization, and a feeling rejection due to religion can be extreme. Here: A framework to think about how people respond when they feel their religious identities are threatened at work, in context of organizational culture.

The Guide to Getting in the Room Where It Happens

Have you ever shown up to a meeting thinking you’ve got great ideas, piercing insights and the motivation to make a positive impact, only to discover the decisions you thought were still on the table have already been made? You’re left wondering if you were the only person who didn’t know. How did that happen?

What Have Leaders Learned From COVID-19?

Leaders set tones at their organizations that can generate positive emotions or negative emotions in people and the workplace. Leaders have a choice. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, we urge you to choose wisely.

3 Essentials to a More Inclusive Hiring Process

Diversity, equity and inclusion are imperative. How can companies — and the individuals in them — ensure the kind of inclusive hiring practices that will lead to a genuinely equitable and diverse culture? Darden Professor Toni Irving discusses problems and solutions for hiring and developing diverse talent.

Q&A: What Can Managers Do to Help Employees Working From Home?

Many employees now work remotely. How can managers help them cope with the unique challenges posed by a stay-at-home world? Darden Professor Roshni Raveendhran discusses blind spots to avoid, concrete strategies to help direct reports, and the important distinction between a company’s formal policies and interpersonal conduct in affecting behavior.