The Role of a Manager Has to Change in 5 Key Ways
Management has long been associated with the five basic functions: planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and controlling. These default dimensions are sufficient when pursuing a fixed target in a stable landscape. But take away the stability of the landscape, and one needs to start thinking about the fluidity of the target.
^ADJ: We need to really encourage active learning, I thought this was important: "What will be needed from managers is to think differently about the future in order to shape the impact AI will have on their industry. This means spending more time exploring the implications of AI, helping others extend their own frontiers of knowledge, and learning through experimentation to develop new practices."
How Maersk Designed a More Resilient Supply Chain
Maersk, the global shipping giant, created an innovation center in 2021 to help it contend not only with the supply disruptions caused by the pandemic but also long-term challenges such the need to decarbonize and further digitize its operations, deploy and leverage AI capabilities, and address endemic staffing and retention issues. In doing so, Maersk adhered to three principles, which other companies can employ to address supply chain problems as well as others.
^ADJ: Key message: Keep a clear focus on enterprise priorities
Building Your Startup’s Attention Flywheel
There’s a concept in network theory called preferential attachment. When one “node”– a person, a company – gets ahead, more people want to connect to it. So it gets even bigger and more connected. It becomes a lodestone, a magnet. PR for your company can work the same way. Once you start getting attention, the more attention accrues to you. The more you get, the easier it is to bond talent, investors, customers, partners, and journalists to your company – your “network.” Which in turn brings even more attention.
^ADJ: Some great thinking on marketing and positioning in this article
The Power of Work Friends
Despite claiming “people are our greatest asset,” too many executives still expect employees to leave their personal lives at the door when they come to work. Yet Gallup data shows that having a best friend at work is strongly linked to business outcomes, including improvements in profitability, safety, inventory control, and employee retention. And Gallup’s latest findings show that since the start of the pandemic, having a best friend at work has an even greater impact on important outcomes — like workers’ likelihood to recommend their workplace, intent to leave, and overall satisfaction. With the unavoidable increase in remote and hybrid work, best friends at work have become lifelines who provide crucial social connection, collaboration, and support for each other during times of change. The author offers four ways managers can create and maintain a friendship-friendly workplace that delivers measurable results.
^ADJ: This article helped me reframe some of my goals this year: do work that I enjoy with people that I enjoy being with.
Flipping the Metabolic Switch: Understanding and Applying Health Benefits of Fasting
Intermittent fasting (IF) is a term used to describe a variety of eating patterns in which no or few calories are consumed for time periods that can range from 12 hours to several days, on a recurring basis. Here we focus on the physiological responses of major organ systems, including the musculoskeletal system, to the onset of the metabolic switch.
^ADJ: Medical paper on the benefits of Intermittent fasting. I have been using an App to help manage and motivate - Zero, if interested look up the work of Dr. Peter Attia and Dr. Andrew Huberman.
What Can World Cup Penalty Shootouts Teach You About Performing Under Extreme Pressure? A Lot,
Performing at your best when the stakes are high can be extremely challenging. But not if you embrace the pressure, and take a few steps to put it in its proper place.