We often talk about the “glass ceiling” that prevents women from reaching senior leadership positions. But the reality is that women are thwarted much earlier in their attempt to climb the ladder to the top—there’s a broken rung far down the ladder that’s keeping them from taking that first step up to manager. Fixing this broken rung is the key to achieving parity. This broken-rung inequality surfaces early in women’s careers and compounds at each subsequent level. There’s good news though. Organizations have begun to recognize that gender parity in leadership roles is a competitive advantage ..read more

Every state has its version of a “lemon law” designed to protect buyers of consumer goods, whether used for personal or household use, against “nonconformities” (i.e., product defects, the proverbial lemons of lemon law). That said, exactly which products may qualify as a “lemon” varies by state. For example, some lemon laws apply to any motor vehicles (new, used, leased), while other states exclude used or leased vehicles. Some states’ lemon laws exclude motorcycles and motorhomes, appliances, and consumer electronics, yet other states like California extend their lemon laws to nearly all con ..read more

Sure, people spend time in lots of places besides home, including bars, churches, ballgames and Starbucks, and all of those places influence them. But the way Iggy Domagalski sees it, employers have the opportunity to have greater impact than any of those venues and institutions simply by dint of how much time people typically spend at work. “Business can be the most powerful force for good in the world,” says Domagalski, CEO of Wajax, a $2-billion industrial manufacturer, distributor and service supplier based in Calgary, Alberta. “You think of other institutions, like church, which have got ..read more

Editor’s Note: Tom Davenport will help keynote our upcoming May 29 Masterclass on AI strategy, a half-day deep learning from three world-class experts built exclusively for CEOs and senior executives keen on moving past AI apprehension and into action. Join Us > In an era where generative AI is rapidly transforming business—or at least promising to—we’re all grappling with the urgency to integrate this groundbreaking technology into our strategies. But the journey from acknowledging its significance to effectively deploying it is fraught with hesitations about risks, a reluctance to falter ..read more

In times of market volatility—think 1991, 2001, 2008—the companies that come out the other side stronger are the ones that act with ruthless prioritization and unwavering commitment. I would posit that these organizations focus on two key things, specifically within their revenue operations, to drive efficiency and scalability in a down market: consistency and repeatability. So how do you create consistency and repeatability? A level of standardization within the revenue workflow is paramount. Revenue leaders must ensure that, as my grandmother used to say, everyone is singing from the same so ..read more

Let’s thank AI, in part, for the volume of information already written about how companies can tap into the power of this technology to unlock new sources of value, drive efficiencies, or improve the customer experience. And that’s only scratching the surface. Add to the mix much, much more on managing disruption, threats and risks, plus governance, education and employee upskilling. Given the magnitude of the impact, it’s easy to understand why the conversation has shifted to all AI, all the time, inside many organizations.  Even so, what may be missing from the conversation is a focus o ..read more

Best-Selling Author Jon Gordon offers a new paradigm when it comes to understanding mental toughness, mental health, mental well-being, and how and why it pays to be positive. He starts with the why. “When we feel positive, we feel more powerful,” observed Gordon in the podcast. That makes perfectly intuitive sense.  But then comes the how, and it’s here that the paradigm begins to shift. In his most recent book, The One Truth: Elevate Your Mind, Unlock Your Power, Heal Your Soul, the best-selling author suggests that positivity is best understood not as an individual trait but as a soci ..read more

After a string of strong months of growing optimism about the direction of the economy, our latest polling finds CEOs pulling back on their rosy outlook for the year to come. Their main concern? Uncertainty, fueled by the likelihood of yet another contentious presidential election.  The election—its unpredictability and impact—is the most-mentioned topic in our polling this month. A growing number of CEOs say they are unable to accurately predict and make decisions about the future of the economy right now and won’t be able to do so until they know who the next president will be.  ..read more

Should the Boeing Company’s recent announcement that it would be replacing its CEO, chairman of the board and a major division head this year be seen as a positive business move that restores the airplane maker’s reputation in the industry and sets it up for future growth, or an admission of a string of failures that has damaged the credibility of the board and puts doubt on its current directors’ ability to lead the company into the future? What the board does over the next several months will answer that question. Unfortunately, the Boeing board finds itself under intense scrutiny as a strin ..read more

Turnover rates began to steadily climb in 2020 and continued to do so over the next two years. In 2022 alone, voluntary departures hit historic highs, with an estimated 50.5 million workers leaving their jobs for other opportunities — be it for a higher paying gig, a company that better aligned with their values or to pursue their passion project. While the Great Resignation has finally wound down, another phenomenon is now picking up speed: Executive turnover. More than 1,400 chief executives abandoned their posts between January and September 2023. That’s almost a 50% year-over-year increase ..read more