The Insightful Leader
A Weekly Newsletter
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DEI Work Is a Marathon. Keep Going.
Sent to subscribers on May 11, 2022
It’s been nearly two years since the murder of George Floyd spurred a major moment of reckoning for organizations that realized they needed to do more to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion in their ranks. Today, many of those organizations have come to realize that this is really, really hard... more
Set Goals You’ll Actually Achieve
Sent to subscribers on May 4, 2022
Knowing how to set goals is important, both for your own professional development and for managing others. Nothing too controversial about that. But Craig Wortmann wants you to know that less than 10 percent of us actually achieve those goals. And that’s a problem.
Reaching a goal is “weirdly hard... more
Leadership Skills of the Future
Sent to subscribers on April 27, 2022
The world—and the workplace—are changing at a sometimes-dizzying rate. Today we’re going to focus on what it’s going to take to be a good leader as organizations continue to evolve.
The topic came from a question from reader Suva Chattopadhyay. He is a leadership coach and facilitator with... more
The Case for a 4-Day Workweek
Sent to subscribers on April 20, 2022
Many employers face a conundrum these days: The combo of low unemployment, the Great Resignation, and two-plus years of remote-work options is making it difficult to attract and retain top talent, not to mention lure the talent they have back into the physical office. So workplaces are trying to... more
I (Don’t) Feel Your Pain
Sent to subscribers on April 13, 2022
Today we’ll be discussing one of the most counterintuitive findings I’ve ever read about how to be an empathic leader—one that still makes me stop and think about my own management style, many years later.
And it comes down to this: if we’ve personally endured a hardship, we are actually less... more
A Less Risky Path to Entrepreneurship
Sent to subscribers on April 6, 2022
Have you ever dreamt of running your own company? If so, you’ve likely pictured yourself at the helm of a scrappy startup that turns your million-dollar idea into reality. Some aspiring entrepreneurs go on to do just that. For others, the high failure rate of startups makes it just too risky.But... more
Leading Your Org through a Cyberattack
Sent to subscribers on March 30, 2022
Last week, President Joe Biden warned U.S. companies to prepare for cyberattacks from Russia, which could come as retaliation for sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. Biden went so far as to call this preparation “a patriotic obligation that you invest as much as you can in making... more
What Makes Zelensky Such a Strong Leader?
Sent to subscribers on March 23, 2022
We’re going to look at leadership through a pretty bleak prism today: the war in Ukraine.
The destruction and suffering in Ukraine has been horrifying to watch. But perhaps equally riveting has been the bravery and defiance of the Ukrainian people, including that of President Volodymyr Zelensky who... more
How to Create Social Change at Work
Sent to subscribers on March 16, 2022
Apparently today is National Everything You Do Is Right Day. I’ve got some questions about how exactly this works. But also, it’s about time! And, when you’re doing something right, you want to bring others along with you, too. Today we’ve got a couple pieces of research about how to help persuade... more
How to Fend Off Cyberattacks
Sent to subscribers on March 9, 2022
Good morning,
Many of our Kellogg experts have led fascinating past lives. Take, for example, Michael Rogers, a retired four-star admiral and former National Security Agency director, who also served as the commander of the United States Cyber Command.
So who better to talk with about... more
How to Be Bold (without Being a Jerk)
Sent to subscribers on March 2, 2022
Good morning,Craig Wortmann has a question for you: What are some of your acts of boldness at work?Maybe you’ve asked for a promotion, or a raise. Maybe you volunteered to lead a big project. Or perhaps you are pushing for a new office policy or way of doing business. That’s great! Now... more
You Don’t Have to Manage to Grow In Your Career
Sent to subscribers on February 23, 2022
Good morning,A few weeks ago we heard from Carter Cast about the three key skills you should look for in people you’re promoting into management jobs. Yet you likely know people in your organization who are rock stars at what they do and don’t have those managerial skills. Or maybe they simply... more
The Perks of Meeting Virtually
Sent to subscribers on February 16, 2022
Good morning,Some people love remote work; some hate it. But perhaps we can agree on this: we’re all fatigued by talking about Zoom fatigue. Yet for many of us, remote work in some form, whether full-time or hybrid, is here to stay. So it behooves us to figure out how to get past that fatigue in... more
How to Encourage Resilience in Your Employees
Sent to subscribers on February 9, 2022
Good morning,
How resilient are you feeling today?
Maybe not so much. After all, it’s been nearly two years of living through a pandemic—of navigating remote work and childcare crises, and covering for coworkers who are out sick, in quarantine, or have resigned. It’s also been two years of... more
3 Skills to Look for in New Managers
Sent to subscribers on February 2, 2022
Good morning,
Have you ever seen a stellar employee get promoted into a management position and just … flail? And, despite everyone’s best efforts to get them extra training and candid feedback, it becomes clear that the role simply doesn’t play to their strengths.
It can be tricky to figure out... more
The Problem with Hiring for Cultural Fit
Sent to subscribers on January 26, 2022
Good morning,
When you have an open position to fill, how much do you focus on whether a candidate will be a good cultural fit for your organization or department?Most managers consider cultural fit a top priority, explains Lauren Rivera, a professor of management and organizations who spent a... more
What Astronauts Can Teach Us About Teamwork
Sent to subscribers on January 19, 2022
Good morning, No matter how much you love your coworkers, you probably don’t want to be confined to a small space with them for months on end. So imagine how tricky it is for astronauts on prolonged space missions to get along. How do they do it? What is needed to keep teams of astronauts operating... more
Should Our Jobs Make Us More Ethical?
Sent to subscribers on January 12, 2022
Here’s a somewhat radical idea: jobs should not only help us grow professionally, but also ethically.That’s the argument made in recent research by Maryam Kouchaki, a professor of management and organizations. She and a coauthor argue that workplaces—where, after all, we spend much of our... more
Before You Quit, Ask Yourself These Questions
Sent to subscribers on January 5, 2022
Here we are in 2022, and COVID is showing no signs of slowing down. Nor is the “great resignation” looking like it will let up anytime soon.Have you been tempted to join the roughly 38 million U.S. workers who quit their jobs last year? Are you itching to do something bigger and bolder, or... more
Are Your Data Visualizations Clear?
Sent to subscribers on December 15, 2021
Charts and graphs are ubiquitous in business these days, appearing in client presentations, internal reports, and marketing materials. These data visualizations can be very powerful and persuasive given that they appeal to the roughly 40 percent of our brain involved in visual comprehension.
But... more
