My first post is up on becomealeader.org — a site targeted principally at social enterprise and non-profit/third sector leaders. It addresses the challenges of leading transformations (in organizations and in society). It is based on research from Harvard Business Review and Business Strategy Review and offers an action plan based on self-discovery, celebration of diversity of perspectives, and rethinking listening.
Your thoughts and comments are encouraged!
I’ve been working on the second edition of Renegotiating Health Care: Resolving Collaboration to Build Collaboration with Lenny Marcus and Barry Dorn, both of the Harvard School of Public Health, for about 15 months. It feels great to have released the manuscript to Jossey-Bass.
I learned a lot about conflict resolution and negotiation as I edited those sections of the text — and a lot about the health care system through interviews that I conducted on the major trends that will shape health care over the next generation. These trends — system integration, empowered patients, technological advances, a more diverse workforce, and new definitions of trust — are at the heart of several chapters new to the second edition. I had the chance to speak with doctors, nurses, administrators, policy makers, and patients.
I end this first phase of the publication process encouraged as there are lots of smart people and organizations engaged in innovative initiatives to improve outcomes, lower costs, and rehumanize the patient experience. I am also discouraged because the so-called system is so resistant to change. There will be conflicts to be resolved and many, many things to negotiate — and hence the reason for updating this book.
The second edition should be out in 2011. It will be used primarily as a graduate school text. Next up: a book on leadership based on our work together at the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative.
My latest case study for Harvard Business Review is up and open for comments. It zeroes in on a dilemma focused by many companies these days: should a Chief Sustainability Officer by hired? Sustainability gets a lot of attention these days but companies wonder whether it is best addressed by the executives currently running the business or an outsider with deep knowledge of the subject matter, possible strategies, reporting requirements, etc.
Compelling arguments can be made for each option. Read the case and weigh in with your thoughts.
The case will appear in the December 2010 issue of the print publication. It was co-authored with Rupert Davis, head of the sustainability practice at MontaRosa — a innovative leadership company.
Alison Brown
I recently had the chance to interview Alison Brown and Garry West, the husband-and-wife team who run Compass Records in Nashville. I’ve known Alison since I recruited her to speak at a Harvard Business Publishing Burning Questions conference in 2003 — who could resist the story of an investment banker-turned Grammy Award-winning banjo player-turned record label founder? It was a tale of a passion for music that would not be denied and that turned not into a lark but into an ultimately more rewarding career.
I also interviewed her for Worthwhile magazine (Worthwhile A Brown interview).
I was in touch again recently because I am working on a book on leadership and wanted to get Alison and Garry’s insights into what it is like to lead people over whom you have little authority — musicians certainly fit the bill. While I have to save most of the leadership insights for the book, I did want to share part of the conversation that I found fascinating: the decision on whether to use an artist’s road band or session players when recording an album. [Read more...]
