Desautels Global Expert: Stephen Kay
Stephen Kay, BA'83, MBA'90, US & Canada leader of Marsh’s Political Risk & Structured Credit practice Thursday, November 2, 2017Guest Lectures in Strategies for Developing Countries (MGPO 475) and Strategic Management: Developing Countries (MGPO 651) with Prof. Paola Perez-Aleman
How management can function amid unpredictability
In an article that explores how managers can adapt under circumstances that defy predictability or norms, the author cites Professor Henry Mintzberg’s discussion of Honda’s entrance into the North American market as an example of unpredictability in business.
Indeed, Honda’s success in North America was a phenomenon that resulted from forces that could not be ascertained or mastered a priori.
Moving away from sports analogies in business
A piece for Forbes.com argues that good management is not akin to a competitive sport, and that managing a company as if it were can yield disastrous results. The sports analogy often used in business promotes the extreme use of resources to create rapid growth, which seems to invariably lead to collapse.
Peter High on strategy, adaptation and integrative thinking
In a piece for Forbes.com, Peter High, President of Metis Strategy, cites Professor Henry Mintzberg to assert that societal change has always been perceived as occurring at lightning speed, and that it is common tendency to believe that the present is different from the past, as it is unresolved by nature.
How business can lead change in South Africa
An opinion piece for News24 argues that, in general, business leaders in South Africa have been heavily influenced by greed, showing little interest in using their resources for improving the nation’s socio-political context.
Beef cattle management includes pregnancy checks
A piece in the Coshocton Tribune delves into the subject of fall-season beef herds and how to decide whether to cull a female. Pregnancy status can be the determining factor, since caring for a cow can cost $1,000 per year. If a cow isn’t a good bet for breeding, it might be better to sell it off or harvest the meat. Since a cow isn’t fully mature until the age of four, good nutrition is crucial for cows that are being aimed at breeding while they are themselves still developing.
Wisdom, comfort zones and Henry Mintzberg
A recent piece in India’s Free Press Journal delves into wisdom and the six parameters listed in the ancient Sanskrit epic, Mahabharata. The parameters include listening intently and gaining a full understanding of something before jumping into action, being able to hold forth on seminal books, having a quick mind and so on. Loyalty is also listed as a big factor, as is openness to change.
Management and Mintzberg’s Five Ps of Strategy
Executive Coach Robert Mandeya writes for the Zimbabwe Independent that organisations live and die by the strategic decisions that their top executives make, and that strategic management is not necessarily the same as strategy. Using Apple’s iPad2 as an example, he delves into the formal tools that help us get a handle on the relationship among factors like executive decision-makers, their companies, and their industries.
Giving disruption a new face
A recent article in Forbes India looks at the buzz-concept of disruption, and how many companies are caught up in a disrupt-or-die philosophy.
When the idea of disruption was first floated in the early 20th century, it reflected the standard market movements of the day; today’s lightning-fast disruption cycle has completely turned the old concept of “normal” on its ear. But is disruption just a by-product of the modern world?
New international sustainability test module based on Mintzberg book announced
The Sustainability Literacy Test (aka “Sulitest”) is both a non-profit and a method for verifying sustainability know-how across the globe. It is the work of an international cadre of academics and business professionals alike, mandated by the UN Conference on Sustainable Development in 2012.
Natalia Aguilar Delgado Finalist for the Emerald Best International Dissertation Award
The dissertation of Desautels PhD alumna Natalia Aguilar Delgado was selected as finalist for the Emerald Best International Dissertation Award of the Academy of Management 2017.
Professor Paola Perez-Aleman was the supervisor of her research.
Natalia graduated in June 2017 and is currently an Assistant Professor of International Business at HEC Montreal.
Jose Carlos Marques Finalist for 2017 AOM SIM Dissertation Award
The dissertation of Desautels PhD alumnus Jose Carlos Marques (PhD'17) was selected as one of the three finalists for the Academy of Management Social Issues in Management Best Dissertation Award 2017.
Microservices are a boon for adaptability-focused firms
Author Ronnie Mitra writes in The New Stack about how businesses are focussing on adaptability like never before, and how that is weighing heavy on tech teams. It looks more and more like the answer lies in microservices.
Professor Dror Etzion wins 2017 Roland Calori Prize
Professor Dror Etzion has been awarded the 2017 Roland Calori Prize for “Tackling Grand Challenges Pragmatically: Robust Action Revisited.”
The Prize is presented bi-annually for the best article published in Organization Studies over the last two years.
Coop Director suggests that we trust our teams
In a piece for Cooperateur, La Coop Fédérée Director Colette Lebel asks what would happen if if we just trust our teams instead of depending on our individualism all the time?