HBR IdeaCast

By Harvard Business Review

Business

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A weekly podcast featuring the leading thinkers in business and management.

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How Companies Can Recommit ...

09.19.2023

After the summer of 2020 in the United States, many organizations made a big push to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in their ranks and operations. But now, many fear that that momentum is slipping, especially in the face of ...

HBR IdeaCast episodes:

09.19.2023 How Companies Can Recommit to Their DEI Goals After the summer of 2020 in the United States, many organizations made a big push to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in their ranks and operations. But now, many fear that that momentum is slipping, especially in the face of ...
09.12.2023 People with Disabilities Are an Untapped Talent Pool It is now accepted wisdom that increasing the diversity of your workforce in any dimension can improve both organizational culture and performance. But one group — people living with intellectual, developmental, and physical disabilities — continues to be overlooked by ...
09.05.2023 If You Want Culture Change, Create New Stories Many leaders realize they need to change their organization’s culture to save the business. But employees usually resist change and stick to past norms. Jay Barney, professor at the University of Utah’s Eccles School of Business, studied leaders who successfully ...
08.29.2023 Leading a Workforce Empowered by New AI Tools New AI technology enables anyone to become a programmer — opening doors to faster analytics and automation but also presenting big challenges. Organizations need policies and strategies to manage the chaos created by what Tom Davenport calls “citizen developers.” Davenport ...
08.22.2023 How One Ukrainian Company Cultivated Resiliency Amid War Companies plan for crises and aim to be resilient and adaptive in the face of all kinds of risks, but it’s always easier said than done. And perhaps none of these threats is as serious as war. That’s what Roman ...
08.15.2023 How to Reinvent a Consumer Brand How does a brand or product that's been around for decades suddenly become popular with a whole new segment of consumers? Terence Reilly has some pointers. As CMO of Crocs, he used social media and celebrity collaborations to drive sales ...
08.08.2023 The VC Fund Closing Equity Gaps — and Making Money Much of the business world has bought into the idea of stakeholder capitalism. But Freada Kapor Klein and Mitch Kapor say that doing some good by doing well isn’t enough when the business impact still creates negative effects and broader ...
08.01.2023 How Companies Can Adapt to More Government Intervention After decades of industrial policy that favored globalization and free trade, we are entering a new era. Prompted by the pandemic, climate change, rising geopolitical tensions and economic concerns, countries and groups of countries are once again using the power ...
07.25.2023 How One F-35 Fighter Pilot Makes Decisions Under Pressure There are few jobs that demand decisive, clear thinking under pressure more than that of a fighter jet pilot. But the best combat pilots don't act on gut and muscle memory alone. They train to use proven mental models for ...
07.18.2023 In Defense of Middle Management Middle managers are meant to serve as a go-between for leadership teams and individual contributors. But in large organizations, with many layers of hierarchy, some of these roles feel like bureaucratic bloat, which, in tighter economic times, makes them a ...
07.11.2023 What the Best Leaders Know — and What Skills They Develop If you had the chance to talk to hundreds of business leaders at the top of their game, what habits and patterns would you learn? Adam Bryant has done just that. He's the senior managing director of the ExCo Group ...
07.04.2023 Best of IdeaCast: Escape Your Comfort Zone We know that trying new things, taking risks, and even failing are vital to most success stories. But getting out of areas where you’re comfortable and breaking through to the next level is easier said than done. Andy Molinsky, professor ...
06.27.2023 Why Entrepreneurs Don’t Need Venture Capital to Scale With all the hype in the startup world around unicorns and hypergrowth, entrepreneurs feel enormous pressure to raise massive amounts of cash from venture capitalists. But now, as interest rates have risen, a lot of that funding has dried up. ...
06.20.2023 NBA Star Chris Paul on Mentorship and Taking a Stand Most of us can point to a few key people who have made a real difference in our lives and careers - a family member, a coach, a boss. And many who get that kind of mentoring build on the ...
06.13.2023 When Small Stresses Lead to Big Problems It's easy to see how big stresses at work or home -- like layoffs, illnesses, or even a complex and important project -- cause anxiety too spike. But sometimes the stresses that cause the most hard are the tiny, everyday ...
06.06.2023 Why More Companies Should Have a Sabbatical Policy Sabbaticals have long been thought of as an academic privilege, but a growing number of companies offer them, especially since the pandemic. DJ DiDonna, a senior lecturer at Harvard Business School and founder of The Sabbatical Project, has interviewed hundreds ...
05.30.2023 Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai on Leadership, AI, and Big Tech The use of artificial intelligence and specifically generative AI is growing rapidly, and tech giants like Google have an important role to play in how that technology gets adopted and developed. Sundar Pichai is the CEO of Google as well ...
05.25.2023 How Generative AI Changes Strategy Strategy is about making the future happen, not just reacting to it, according to author Gary Hamel. And with generative artificial intelligence, senior leaders suddenly wield an awesome new tool to change the fortunes of their organizations. The promise of ...
05.23.2023 Stop Looking for the Perfect Job One of the first things we learn about people is what they do for a living. But the link between work and identify has moved far beyond that, especially in certain industries, geographies, and cultures. Many of us put everything ...
05.18.2023 How Generative AI Changes Organizational Culture Read just about any business history and you realize just how much a firm’s success depends on its culture. Without the right culture, you can't have successful innovation. You can't compete successfully. You can't thrive over the long term. So, ...
05.16.2023 Breaking Through When You Feel Stuck You don’t have to be a famous author to suffer from writer’s block. We all can get stuck in our thought processes and mired in our actions. That's true for leaders and managers as well, explains Adam Alter, a marketing ...
05.11.2023 How Generative AI Changes Creativity From prehistoric cave paintings to an inventor’s Eureka moment, creativity has always been described as a particularly human trait. But something strange can happen with generative artificial intelligence. Your ideas can take shape far faster. You also get ideas that ...
05.09.2023 A Marketing Professor and a Matchmaker Talk Personal Branding Unless you're famous - or want to be - you might not think of yourself as a brand. But whether you're in a meeting or on social media, interviewing for a job or asking for a promotion, the way you ...
05.04.2023 How Generative AI Changes Productivity How Generative AI Changes Everything is a special series from HBR IdeaCast. Each week, HBR editor in chief Adi Ignatius and HBR editor Amy Bernstein host conversations with experts and business leaders about the impact of generative AI on productivity, ...
05.02.2023 Disruption Isn’t the Only Path to Innovation Disruptive innovation has proven such a powerful idea that many people now equate innovation with market disruption. But INSEAD strategy professor Renée Mauborgne says there's a powerful way to create new markets without destroying jobs, companies, and communities: "nondisruptive creation." ...
04.27.2023 Special Series: How Generative AI Changes Everything Generative AI seems to be everywhere right now, but what do you actually need to know? HBR IdeaCast is cutting through the noise in the special series How Generative AI Changes Everything. How will this new technology upend workforce productivity? ...
04.25.2023 Reid Hoffman on Building AI and Other Tech More Responsibly As a founding board member of PayPal, cofounder of LinkedIn, and a partner at Silicon Valley VC firm Greylock, Reid Hoffman has long been at the forefront of the U.S. tech industry, from the early days of social media to ...
04.18.2023 Stop Neglecting Low-Wage Workers Many people blame the shortage of low-wage workers on the enduring impact of the pandemic. But management professor Joseph Fuller and senior researcher Manjari Raman of Harvard Business School say that the real reason has been long in the making. ...
04.11.2023 How Managing Your Anxiety Can Make You a Better Leader The business world has increasingly begun to recognize the importance of mental health, but we still have a long way to go in openly acknowledging our challenges with it. Writer, entrepreneur, and podcast host Morra Aarons-Mele says that when we ...
04.04.2023 A Forensic Accountant on How Companies Can Avoid Fraud and Scandal From Theranos to Enron, we can't get enough of corporate scandals. We also can't get enough of the intriguing people who perpetrate them. But instigators of fraud are not all Disneyesque villains chasing money and power at any cost, says ...
03.28.2023 X’s Astro Teller on Managing Moonshot Innovation How do you solve the world's toughest problems? Or find the next big thing in tech? Lots organizations fail to explore and take big bets on new ideas because they can't tolerate the mess of experimentation and the fear of ...
03.21.2023 Brain Tech Is Getting Really Good. Here’s What Managers Need to Know What seemed like science fiction for decades is now a reality: companies are selling wearable tech and monitoring devices that can sense people’s brain activity. Neurotechnology opens incredible opportunities for new products and safer workplaces. It also raises huge red ...
03.14.2023 Why You (and Your Company) Need to Experiment with ChatGPT Now The online application ChatGPT and its integration into Microsoft search engines have put generative artificial intelligence technology in the hands of millions of people. Early adopters are using them in their daily jobs, and preliminary academic studies show big boosts ...
03.07.2023 IBM’s Ginni Rometty on Skill-Building and Success For years, employers have used university degrees as a major requirement for hiring. But, for many jobs, success depends more on skills -- and the ability to adapt and learn -- than on piece-of-paper credentials. Ginni Rometty, former chairman and ...
02.28.2023 The Ins and Outs of the Influencer Industry Online influencers are an increasingly important way for companies to find new customers and drive sales. Whether you're a marketer who wants to more effectively use social media or a consumer targeted by influencer content - in good ways and ...
02.21.2023 Why Leaders Should Rethink Their Decision-Making Process Many people believe that leaders instinctively make the best decisions based on past experience, almost like muscle memory. But Carol Kauffman, assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and the founder of the Institute of Coaching, says falling back on automatic ...
02.14.2023 The Subtle Art of Disagreeing with Your Boss Whether you're someone who enjoys ruffling feathers or the type of person who'd like to challenge the status quo but shies away, you'll benefit from understanding the best, research--backed ways to practice disagreement - even insubordination - while holding onto ...
02.07.2023 Why Many Companies Get Layoffs Wrong From Microsoft to Google to Meta, many of the world's biggest tech companies have been announcing layoffs recently. Their explanation is usually that they overhired and need to cut costs. But Harvard Business School professor Sandra Sucher, who has been ...
01.31.2023 A Deeper Understanding of Creativity at Work We all know that creativity is the backbone of innovation and, ultimately, business success. But we don't always think deeply about how creative people get their ideas and the steps we might take to do the same. Gabriella Rosen Kellerman, ...
01.24.2023 Guy Raz on What Great Business Leaders Have in Common By hosting the podcasts How I Built This and Wisdom from the Top, Guy Raz has won an inside look at how visionary leaders build their own careers and incredible companies. While many leaders have unique qualities that help them ...
01.17.2023 Money, Flexibility, Development? Figuring Out What Employees Really Value Even in a slowing economy, the battle to attract and retain talent persists. But employers need to look beyond what people are currently demanding — whether it’s higher salaries, more stock options or the flexibility to work from home. Studies ...
01.10.2023 Work Insights from the World’s Longest Happiness Study It's the start of a fresh year, and optimism is in the air. But if you want happiness to extend far beyond your New Year's resolution, Robert Waldinger says you can take some inspiration from the longest-running study of happiness ...
01.03.2023 Best of IdeaCast 2022 From incivility for frontline workers to struggles with hybrid work to actual progress made since the murder of George Floyd, HBR IdeaCast spent 2022 sharing impactful management research and exploring the social and business trends that affect workers and leaders. ...
12.27.2022 LinkedIn’s CEO on Hiring Strategies and the Skills That Matter Most (from The New World of Work) In The New World of Work video series, host and HBR Editor in Chief Adi Ignatius explores how top-tier executives see the future and how their companies are trying to set themselves up for success. Each week, he interviews a ...
12.20.2022 Ron Howard on Collaborative Leadership and Career Longevity For decades, actor-producer-director Ron Howard has made popular and critically acclaimed movies while also maintaining a reputation for being one of the nicest guys in Hollywood. He explains how he turned early TV gigs into long-term success and why he ...
12.13.2022 Why Some Start-Ups Fail to Scale Managing rapid growth is a huge challenge for young businesses. Even start-ups with glowing reviews and skyrocketing sales can fail. That’s because new ventures and corporate initiatives alike have to sustain profitability at scale, according to Harvard Business School senior ...
12.06.2022 You’ve Made Some DEI Progress. Don’t Stop Now Over the past few years, organizations around the world have invested in diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives with varying results. But to achieve lasting change, they'll need to commit to that work for much longer, says Ella Washington, organizational psychologist ...
11.29.2022 The Growing “Do Good” Economy From corporate social responsibility to ESG to “doing well by doing good,” an increasing number of organizations are pursuing positive social impact, and it’s not just nonprofits and government agencies. But incorporating social impact into a for-profit business raises all ...
11.22.2022 Let’s Protect Our Frontline Workers from Rude Customers From videos of drunk and disorderly airline passengers to stories of hospital visitors angrily refusing to wear masks, customer-facing work seems to have gotten a lot more difficult – even dangerous -- over the past few years. It's important that ...
11.15.2022 What We Still Misunderstand About Mentorship and Sponsorship Companies offer sponsorship programs to help a more diverse group of high performers and future leaders advance. But the efforts can often misfire. Herminia Ibarra, professor at London Business School, says that’s because these arranged developmental relationships can lack authenticity ...

Older episodes

HBR IdeaCast

What's HBR IdeaCast about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

HBR IdeaCast episodes:

How Companies Can Recommit to Their DEI Goals

People with Disabilities Are an Untapped Talent Pool

If You Want Culture Change, Create New Stories

Leading a Workforce Empowered by New AI Tools

How One Ukrainian Company Cultivated Resiliency Amid War

How to Reinvent a Consumer Brand

The VC Fund Closing Equity Gaps — and Making Money

How Companies Can Adapt to More Government Intervention

How One F-35 Fighter Pilot Makes Decisions Under Pressure

In Defense of Middle Management

What the Best Leaders Know — and What Skills They Develop

Best of IdeaCast: Escape Your Comfort Zone

Why Entrepreneurs Don’t Need Venture Capital to Scale

NBA Star Chris Paul on Mentorship and Taking a Stand

When Small Stresses Lead to Big Problems

Why More Companies Should Have a Sabbatical Policy

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai on Leadership, AI, and Big Tech

How Generative AI Changes Strategy

Stop Looking for the Perfect Job

How Generative AI Changes Organizational Culture

Breaking Through When You Feel Stuck

How Generative AI Changes Creativity

A Marketing Professor and a Matchmaker Talk Personal Branding

How Generative AI Changes Productivity

Disruption Isn’t the Only Path to Innovation

Special Series: How Generative AI Changes Everything

Reid Hoffman on Building AI and Other Tech More Responsibly

Stop Neglecting Low-Wage Workers

How Managing Your Anxiety Can Make You a Better Leader

A Forensic Accountant on How Companies Can Avoid Fraud and Scandal

X’s Astro Teller on Managing Moonshot Innovation

Brain Tech Is Getting Really Good. Here’s What Managers Need to Know

Why You (and Your Company) Need to Experiment with ChatGPT Now

IBM’s Ginni Rometty on Skill-Building and Success

The Ins and Outs of the Influencer Industry

Why Leaders Should Rethink Their Decision-Making Process

The Subtle Art of Disagreeing with Your Boss

Why Many Companies Get Layoffs Wrong

A Deeper Understanding of Creativity at Work

Guy Raz on What Great Business Leaders Have in Common

Money, Flexibility, Development? Figuring Out What Employees Really Value

Work Insights from the World’s Longest Happiness Study

Best of IdeaCast 2022

LinkedIn’s CEO on Hiring Strategies and the Skills That Matter Most (from The New World of Work)

Ron Howard on Collaborative Leadership and Career Longevity

Why Some Start-Ups Fail to Scale

You’ve Made Some DEI Progress. Don’t Stop Now

The Growing “Do Good” Economy

Let’s Protect Our Frontline Workers from Rude Customers

What We Still Misunderstand About Mentorship and Sponsorship

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