ManagementCast by IMD

Stress is something most of us dread. Even the word itself can conjure up negative emotions, and evoke memories of long sleepless nights.

But what if stress itself was something different? What if we could turn stress into a positive force? What if we could change our stress mindset?

That, says Professor Alyson Meister, is the key to unlocking a happier, healthier, and perhaps even longer, life. Meister says that a 'stress mindset' is a core belief we have about the way we handle pressure; and that our mental attitude dictates how our body responds. A positive stress mindset, she says, can influence everything from the levels of cortisol in our body, to how many sick days we take in a year.

Mental health and the effects of mental health have been important to Meister from a very young age, and she says workplace wellbeing has reached a critical turning point. In her first episode of ManagementCast, she discusses how to develop a positive attitude to stress, the ways we can use threats to our advantage, and how to turn pressure into constructive energy.

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Alyson Meister is Professor of Leadership and Organizational Behavior. She helps organizations to develop inclusive and resilient leaders, teams, and workplaces. Her research specialty includes topics surrounding identity and diversity as well as workplace stress, mental health, and wellbeing. She was named on the Thinkers50 Radar list in 2021 and subsequently nominated for a Thinkers50 Distinguished Achievement Award.

As long as the locus of power in an organization lies outside of the LGBTQ+ community, allyship will play a central part in creating inclusive workplaces. But in 2023, says IMD professor Misiek Piskorski, it's no longer enough to be a positive role model. True leadership, is about creating allies around you. 

He argues that the privileged few need to advocate on behalf of others for equal recognition and the ability to advance in the organization regardless of who they are. This process can be fraught with problems, so for those in power, allyship today will require energy, thought, and commitment. 

In episode three of IMD's Pride Month specials, Piskorski discusses ways to encourage allyship without constraints, how to overcome fear, and what it takes for leaders to reach their full potential. 

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Mikołaj Jan Piskorski, also known as Misiek Piskorski, is IMD’s Professor of Digital Strategy, Analytics and Innovation and Dean of Asia and Oceania. He is an expert on digital strategy, platform strategy, and the process of digital business transformation. 

Working with businesses across the globe, Piskorski aims to demystify digital transformation by taking this complex and complicated topic and distilling it down to its core principles, and to the five or six key decisions that companies need to take. The multilayered framework that he developed to help companies devise a digital transformation strategy consists of a series of easy-to-understand steps. This exercise is made more accessible by the use of cases to show how other companies have tackled the process. Companies come out at the end with a detailed strategy they can implement in full or in part. 

In 1992, Professor Robert Hooijberg caught a glimpse of what it means to be anything other than a white heterosexual male in the workplace. Since then, he has taught diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) programs across the globe. 

Hooijberg, too, has a special insight into the importance of allyship. He does not identify as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, but his son does. As a transgender man, he has encountered incredible biases and even violence in the workplace.  

Professor Hooijberg says it’s our collective responsibility to combat such hatred. He passionately believes that the workplace needs to be a safe space regardless of your sexual orientation or gender identity. He is interested in creating an environment where everybody can flourish and thinks commercial enterprises need to be invested in that goal. 

In this in-depth interview, Professor Hooijberg talks about the importance of allyship, how to support family, friends, and colleagues in the face of adversity, and the pride he feels for his son. 

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Robert Hooijberg is a Professor of Organizational Behavior at IMD. His areas of interest include leadership, negotiations, team building, digital transformation, and organizational culture, with a specific focus on the alignment of culture and strategy. He helps organizations create powerful performance-oriented cultures aligned with strategy and has developed an innovative approach to the study of cases on the topic.

ManagementCast is back for its second season, and to kick off the series IMD is proud to present the first of several special episodes to celebrate Pride Month. 

The first is with Alexander Fleischmann, a research affiliate at IMD who has been writing about LGBTQ+ issues for more than 15 years. In that time, he has witnessed radical changes in how LGBTQ+ individuals are treated in the workplace and in the research he has engaged with throughout his career. 

In this in-depth interview, Fleischmann says business culture can be measured in how it deals with marginalized positions and that the biggest task of the upcoming years is how to cater to underrepresented groups. "It's not about making minority politics," he argues. “It’s about asking how we can evolve our overall culture. How can we make it inclusive for everyone by looking at how formerly marginalized groups are treated?" 

Fleischmann believes it's crucial to make clear that this culture of inclusivity benefits everyone. In his first appearance on the show, he discusses what drew him to LGBTQ+ and inclusivity research, what's changed in the last two decades, and what still needs to change in the workplaces of tomorrow. 

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Alexander Fleischmann received his PhD at the Institute for Gender and Diversity and Organization from the Vienna University of Economics and Business. He is now a research affiliate at IMD.

Whether in the boardroom or the classroom, business strategies will continue to emerge and evolve. As long as there are commercial opportunities to chase, there will be an incentive to improve.

Some ideas, though, aren't limited to commercial applications; and IMD Professor Cyril Bouquet says his mega dive approach is one of them. In the words of  the award-winning researcher, improvements in technology will only lead to greater returns on training:

"Creating the future requires diversity of thought, and the capacity to combine views to create something new and interesting to tackle complex problems in their lives," says Bouquet, "you can not only use technology, and use AI to recognize problems, but also to find solutions."

Over three interviews, IMD Professor Cyril Bouquet has explained how his mega-dive approach can generate conversations between disparate teams. In Episode 20 of ManagementCast, he discusses how the mega-dive approach itself will change, and the importance of investing in the future.

Cyril Bouquet is a researcher, consultant, and teacher at the IMD campus in Lausanne. He supports organizations on significant transition journeys as they seek to create change and deliver progress for society, and most recently, he has deployed his mega dive method in his work with 700 top executives at the shipping firm Maersk, helping the company to adapt quickly to changing environments and shifting customer demands.

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Read our new magazine, I by IMD, here.
Discover IMD's leadership programmes here.

Guest: Professor Cyril Bouquet
Host: JohnJo Devlin
Produced by: JohnJo Devlin
Editing: Max Bower 

Training is central to long-term business success. But how can companies justify investing in the future when the present is so costly?

The answer, says IMD Professor Cyril Bouquet, lies in the data: "All the empirical evidence suggests that companies that do invest in training and executive development, that invest in innovation, in general, come out of a crisis much stronger than those who just worry about the immediate situation."

"You should ask yourself, how can I help my people to unlock the keys to the future"

As a Professor of Strategy and Innovation at IMD, Bouquet has helped global brands such as L'Oréal and Nestlé, and organizations like the International Olympic Committee achieve their goals. In Episode 19 of Managementcast, he discusses the importance of looking to the future, even in times of financial hardship

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Cyril Bouquet is an award-winning researcher, consultant, and teacher, and supports organizations on significant transition journeys as they seek to create change and deliver progress for society. Most recently, he has deployed his mega dive method in his work with 700 top executives at the shipping firm Maersk, helping the company to adapt quickly to changing environments and shifting customer demands.

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Read our new magazine, I by IMD, here.
Discover IMD's leadership programmes here.

Guest: Professor Cyril Bouquet
Host: JohnJo Devlin
Produced by: JohnJo Devlin
Editing: Max Bower 

In his first appearance on ManagementCast, IMD Professor Cyril Bouquet described his mega dive approach; and the reasons why this is one the best ways to open up an inter-departmental collaboration within large organizations. 

But what do businesses actually need to launch a "mega dive" themselves?

Bouquet says that "there are a few key factors that need to be in place," but advises that "the first one is the commitment of the top management team". Without executive buy-in, the process won't work. With it, he says, ownership and belief in the system will follow.

Cyril Bouquet is a Professor of Strategy and Innovation at IMD. An award-winning researcher and teacher, he supports organizations on significant transition journeys as they seek to create change and deliver progress for society.

Most recently, he has deployed his mega dive method in his work with 700 top executives at the shipping firm Maersk, helping the company to adapt quickly to changing environments and shifting customer demands.

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Read our new magazine, I by IMD, here.
Discover IMD's leadership programmes here.

Guest: Professor Cyril Bouquet
Host: JohnJo Devlin
Produced by: JohnJo Devlin
Editing: Max Bower 

At IMD, Professor Cyril Bouquet has pioneered the 'mega dive,' a management approach that brings together large groups of people as one united force. A force capable of embracing the future together.

But what does that mean in practice?

Bouquet says that 'mega dive' isn't just an event, it's a six-month journey that spans digital and in-person conversations. It can involve hundreds of people, in dozens of teams, and it always generates conversation between those who normally wouldn't have the opportunity to debate their views. In Episode 17 of ManagementCast, Bouquet discusses this method, and how he's helped clients from across the globe prepare for success.

Cyril Bouquet is a Professor of Strategy and Innovation at IMD. An award-winning researcher and teacher, he supports organizations on significant transition journeys as they seek to create change and deliver progress for society. 

Most recently, he has deployed his mega dive method in his work with 700 top executives at the shipping firm Maersk, helping the company to adapt quickly to changing environments and shifting customer demands.

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Read our new magazine, I by IMD, here.
Discover IMD's leadership programmes here.

Guest: Professor Cyril Bouquet
Host: JohnJo Devlin
Produced by: JohnJo Devlin
Editing: Max Bower 

Fifteen years ago, the concept of a social media influencer was in its infancy, but today these communicators shape global conversations on everything from retail to politics. Is that what evolution looks like?

IMD professor Jennifer Jordan says "no". In her words, evolution implies a positive change, and power doesn't evolve, it transforms. To stay ahead of the curve, executives need to keep an eye on power trends and work on their own approach through feedback assessments and coaching. 

In Episode 16 of ManagementCast, Jordan discusses the future of influence and what to expect from the next generation of power brokers.

Jennifer Jordan is a social psychologist and a digital transformation expert. Her work has appeared in numerous scientific journals, and in 2019 she was named by Poets&Quants as one of the world’s leading business school professors under 40. Jordan’s research focuses on ethics and influence, and she has delivered custom programs and consultancy services for a wide range of companies, including Barilla, KONE, and Shell.

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Read our new magazine, I by IMD, here.
Discover IMD's leadership programmes here.

Guest: Professor Jennifer Jordan
Host: JohnJo Devlin
Produced by: JohnJo Devlin
Editing: Max Bower 

The proverbial saying, “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely,” suggests that as a person’s influence increases, their moral sense diminishes. But how does that square with today’s business world?

IMD Professor Jennifer Jordan says it’s more complex than that. Power is the engine that drives decision-making, but it also acts as a magnifying glass, exacerbating positive or negative tendencies that are already there. 

Power can also be transformative – which, says Jordan, is something to look out for. In Episode 15 of ManagementCast, she describes the problems and pitfalls of power, and how the modern executive can avoid them.

Jennifer Jordan is a social psychologist and a digital transformation expert. Her work has appeared in numerous scientific journals and in 2019 she was named by Poets&Quants as one of the world’s leading business school professors under 40. Jordan’s research focuses on ethics and influence, and she has delivered custom programs and consultancy services for a wide range of companies, including Barilla, KONE, and Shell.

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Read our new magazine, I by IMD, here.
Discover IMD's leadership programmes here.

Guest: Professor Jennifer Jordan
Host: JohnJo Devlin
Produced by: JohnJo Devlin
Editing: Max Bower