Best Articles from McKinsey Quarterly from 2015--enjoy!

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1. DECODING LEADERSHIP: WHAT REALLY MATTERS
New research suggests that the secret to developing effective leaders is
to encourage four types of behavior.
http://email.mckinsey.com/13102282clayfousucax4x2aaaaaabzdabe2djjtruqyaaaaa

2. THE EIGHT ESSENTIALS OF INNOVATION
Strategic and organizational factors are what separate successful
big-company innovators from the rest of the field.
http://email.mckinsey.com/1d2161c78layfousucax4x2iaaaaabzdabe2djjtruqyaaaaa

3. THE DAWN OF MARKETING'S NEW GOLDEN AGE
Marketers are boosting their precision, broadening their scope, moving
more quickly, and telling better stories.
http://email.mckinsey.com/12c5b46c5layfousucax4x2qaaaaabzdabe2djjtruqyaaaaa

4. DISRUPTING BELIEFS: A NEW APPROACH TO BUSINESS-MODEL INNOVATION
In a disruptive age, established business models are under attack.
Here's how incumbent companies can reframe them.
http://email.mckinsey.com/1cf4f7291layfousucax4x2yaaaaabzdabe2djjtruqyaaaaa

5. RAISING YOUR DIGITAL QUOTIENT
Following the leader is a dangerous game. It's better to focus on
building an organization and culture that can realize the strategy
that's right for you.
http://email.mckinsey.com/107f0b8dflayfousucax4x3aaaaaabzdabe2djjtruqyaaaaa

6. AN EXECUTIVE'S GUIDE TO THE INTERNET OF THINGS
The rate of adoption is accelerating. Here are six things you need to
know.
http://email.mckinsey.com/1e4e48c8blayfousucax4x3iaaaaabzdabe2djjtruqyaaaaa

7. ARE YOU READY TO DECIDE?
Before doing so, executives should ask themselves two sets of questions.
http://email.mckinsey.com/11aa9d636layfousucax4x3qaaaaabzdabe2djjtruqyaaaaa

8. AN EXECUTIVE'S GUIDE TO MACHINE LEARNING
It's no longer the preserve of artificial-intelligence researchers and
born-digital companies like Amazon, Google, and Netflix.
http://email.mckinsey.com/1f9bde262layfousucax4x3yaaaaabzdabe2djjtruqyaaaaa

9. HOW GOOGLE BREAKS THROUGH
Lorraine Twohill, Google's senior vice president of global marketing,
describes what has and hasn't changed for marketers trying to connect
with customers.
http://email.mckinsey.com/1872d4a06layfousucax4x4aaaaaabzdabe2djjtruqyaaaaa

10. HOW TO SEPARATE LEARNING MYTHS FROM REALITY
Misconceptions about the brain are embedded in corporate training
programs and could be sabotaging their effectiveness. Companies should
reevaluate them in light of the latest scientific insights.
http://email.mckinsey.com/164397e52layfousucax4x4iaaaaabzdabe2djjtruqyaaaaa

Innovation's Secret Sauce -- Project-based Work (PBW)

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Just completed two weeks of our Stanford Advanced Project Management (SAPM)(apm.stanford.edu) executive education at Stanford. Students from 6 continents and 25+ countries. The program is focused on improving the execution of strategy through project-based work (PBW).

One thing I consistently see missing in strategy and strategy execution discussions is this critical fact: Innovation requires PBW.  Note -- PBW includes are that work we think of as projects, programs, portfolios of projects and programs, initiatives, engagements. Basically anything that has a start and stop and is not on-going operations.

Innovation is the hot button but most leaders absolutely miss the point: ALL innovation requires project-based work...no exceptions. I have studied extensively and found no examples where there was innovation without PBW.

How you plan and execute PBW is critical for successful innovation in ANY organization, whether a new start-up, a government agency, an NGO, or an established global business.

3 Questions @ Innovations and PBW

  1. Does you organization understand that innovation is driven by successful PBW?
  2. Do your innovation leaders know that innovation requires PBW?
  3. Is your innovation fully aligned with your organization's overall strategy?