Communication →
- 23 Sep 2009
- Working Paper Summaries
Operational Failures and Problem Solving: An Empirical Study of Incident Reporting
Operational failures occur within organizations across all industries, with consequences ranging from minor inconveniences to major catastrophes. How can managers encourage frontline workers to solve problems in response to operational failures? In the health-care industry, the setting for this study, operational failures occur often, and some are reported to voluntary incident reporting systems that are meant to help organizations learn from experience. Using data on nearly 7,500 reported incidents from a single hospital, the researchers found that problem-solving in response to operational failures is influenced by both the risk posed by the incident and the extent to which management demonstrates a commitment to problem-solving. Findings can be used by organizations to increase the contribution of incident reporting systems to operational performance improvement. Key concepts include: Operational failures that trigger more financial and liability risks are associated with more frontline worker problem-solving. By communicating the importance of problem-solving and engaging in problem-solving themselves, line managers can stimulate increased problem-solving among frontline workers. Even without managers' regular engagement in problem-solving, communication about its importance can promote more problem-solving among frontline workers. By explaining some of the variation in responsiveness to operational failures, this study empowers managers to adjust their approach to stimulate more problem-solving among frontline workers. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 29 Jun 2009
- Sharpening Your Skills
Sharpening Your Skills: Leading Change
Nothing like a global recession to test your change-management skills. We dig deep into the Working Knowledge vault to learn about building a business in a down economy, motivating the troops, and other current topics. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 14 May 2009
- Sharpening Your Skills
Sharpening Your Skills: Managing Teams
The ability to lead teams is fast becoming a critical skill for all managers in the 21st century. Here are four HBS Working Knowledge stories from the archives that address everything from how teams learn to turning individual performers into team players. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 05 Mar 2009
- What Do You Think?
How Frank or Deceptive Should Leaders Be?
HBS professor Jim Heskett sums up comments to this month's column. Given the possibility that a naturally pessimistic (or perhaps more realistic) CEO might adversely affect everything from market reactions to employee morale, HBS Working Knowledge readers' comments are full of advice for honesty, candor, and an optimistic bias. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 17 Nov 2008
- Research & Ideas
Decoding the Artful Sidestep
Do you notice when someone changes the subject after you ask them a question? If you don't always notice or even mind such conversational transformations, you're not alone. New research by Todd Rogers and Harvard Business School professor Michael I. Norton explores the common occurrence of "conversational blindness." Q&A with Rogers. Key concepts include: In the study, speakers who dodged a question suffered no ill will from their listeners and paid no price. People prefer, trust, and like a question-dodger who is smooth and sounds confident over a question-answerer who is unsmooth and stammers. If you're a listener who wants to avoid conversational blindness on important matters, here's a tip: Remember your question. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 22 Sep 2008
- Research & Ideas
The Silo Lives! Analyzing Coordination and Communication in Multiunit Companies
A new Harvard Business School working paper looks inside the communications "black box" of a large company to understand who talks to whom, and finds the corporate silo as impenetrable as ever. Q&A with professor Toby E. Stuart. Key concepts include: Inside the studied company, practically speaking, little interaction occurred across three major corporate boundaries: business units, organizational functions, and office locations. Communication patterns were extremely hierarchical: Executives, middle managers, and rank-and-file employees communicated extensively within their own levels, but there were far fewer cross-pay-grade interactions in the firm. Junior executives, women, and members of the salesforce were the key actors in bridging the silos. Relative to men, women participate in a greater volume of electronic and face-to-face interactions and do so with a larger and more diverse set of communication partners. Server logs can provide valuable information to managers on communication flows within their own organizations. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 31 Jul 2008
- Working Paper Summaries
Communication (and Coordination?) in a Modern, Complex Organization
Coordination, and the communication it implies, is central to the very existence of organizations. Despite their fundamental role in the purpose of organizations, scholars have little understanding of actual interaction patterns in modern, complex, multiunit firms. To open the proverbial "black box" and begin to reveal the internal wiring of the firm, this paper presents a detailed, descriptive analysis of the network of communications among members of a large, structurally, functionally, geographically, and strategically diverse firm. The full data set comprises more than 100 million electronic mail messages and over 60 million electronic calendar entries for a sample of more 30,000 employees over a three-month period in 2006. Key concepts include: Communication is heavily constrained by formal organizational structure: the vast majority of communication occurs within business unit and functional boundaries, not across them. This points to the importance of drawing the right organizational boundaries. Women, mid- to high-level executives, and members of the executive management, sales, and marketing functions are most likely to participate in cross-group communications. These individuals provide a bridge for distant groups in a company's social structure. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 31 Jan 2007
- HBS Case
When Good Teams Go Bad
Jeff Polzer and Scott Snook teach "The Army Crew Team" case and the dilemma faced by a rowing coach who has great individual parts but can't get them to synchronize. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 06 Mar 2006
- Research & Ideas
Four Strategies for Making Concessions
"Concessions are often necessary in negotiation," says HBS professor Deepak Malhotra. "But they often go unappreciated and unreciprocated." Here he explains four strategies for building good will and reciprocity. From Negotiation. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 20 Jun 2005
- Research & Ideas
Creating a Positive Professional Image
In today’s diverse workplace, your actions and motives are constantly under scrutiny. Time to manage your own professional image before others do it for you. An interview with professor Laura Morgan Roberts. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 30 May 2005
- Research & Ideas
Six Steps for Making Your Threat Credible
It damages your reputation, your company, and the deal if you make empty threats in negotiation. In this article from Negotiation, HBS professor Deepak Malhotra explains six steps for powerful follow-through. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 05 Apr 2004
- Research & Ideas
Six Ways to Build Trust in Negotiations
All negotiations involve risk. That’s why establishing trust at the bargaining table is crucial. Professor Deepak Malhotra presents strategies to build trustworthiness. From Negotiation. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 02 Apr 2001
- Research & Ideas
What Makes a Good Leader?
Leadership comes in many shapes and sizes, and often from entirely unexpected quarters. In this excerpt from the HBS Bulletin, five HBS professors weigh in with their views on leadership in action. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
Power Posing: Fake It Until You Make It
Nervous about an upcoming presentation or job interview? Holding one's body in "high-power" poses for short time periods can summon an extra surge of power and sense of well-being when it's needed, according to Harvard Business School professor Amy J.C. Cuddy. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.