Mindfulness at SAP (A): A skeptic attends the program

Identify your superpowers to strengthen your personal brand and executive presence, and learn how unique skills help you overcome imposter syndrome.

As organizations become increasingly complex, fast paced, and interconnected, one of the key skills that will set leaders apart will be how they show up and communicate.

Leadership is no longer just about directing tasks or achieving short-term goals. It is about navigating complexity, fostering growth, and addressing the human dimension of work in an era of constant change. Today’s leaders are expected to balance...

Longevity was once seen by traditionalists as a proxy for good leadership, but successive generations attach less value to length of time served. As with anything, there are benefits and disadvantages. Here are the pros and cons of longevity to co...

This technical note presents a comprehensive framework for achieving adaptive advantage, which is the ability to consistently evolve at a speed that surpasses environmental and competitive change. In today's rapidly changing business environment, characterized by technological advancement, AI disruption, geopolitical turbulence and climate shifts, organizations must adapt continuously rather than through periodic transformations. The note identifies seven essential elements that form an integrated system for adaptive advantage: capable growth-minded people; psychological safety and trust; small, semi-autonomous, cross-functional teams; clear mission ownership with outcome accountability; distributed decision-making authority; external and internal sensing with transparency; and lightweight coordination mechanisms. These elements are organized into three categories: foundation (people and culture prerequisites), operating model (how work gets done flexibly), and enabling systems (how information and coordination support adaptability). Through systematic analysis of six popular organizational models (Military Mission Command, Lean Startup, Agile/Scrum, DevOps, Team of Teams and Teal Organizations), the note reveals why existing frameworks fall short: Most address only three to five elements while leaving significant gaps, and organizations often implement them superficially without the deeper cultural foundations that make them work. The note explores the leadership and talent transformations required for implementation, emphasizing the shift from commanding to enabling leadership approaches. It also demonstrates why this framework is critical for successful AI integration, as adaptive organizations can evolve into human–AI hybrids that leverage the best of both intelligences. The note concludes with practical guidance for assessing organizational adaptive readiness and implementing the framework through a foundation-first approach.

Longevity was once seen by traditionalists as a proxy for good leadership, but successive generations attach less value to length of time served. As with anything, there are benefits and disadvantages. Here are the pros and cons of longevity to co...

Marie France Tschudin outlines seven ways to excel as a board member. Learn how to lead by stepping back by focusing on your lane, experience and culture.

Progressing internal talent helps hedge against new CEO failure, but it all hinges on integrating leadership development and succession planning. Ric Roi identifies the warning signs for organizations that fail to put the right processes in place ...

To turn climate promises into meaningful results, boards must shape pay incentives by embedding environmental targets into compensation packages.

Walmex CEO Gui Loureiro shares how he transformed a retail giant into a purpose-driven digital ecosystem — and himself in the process.