Harvard Business Review - 2016.05.pdf

MAY 201694 The HBR InterviewHP s Meg Whi tman on Creati ng a Sense of Urgency40 The Big Idea Embraci ng Agi leDarrell K.Rigby,Jeff Sutherland,and Hirotaka Takeuchi 80 SpotlightHedge Your Strategi c BetsGeorge Stalk Jr.and Ashish IyerHERMS BY NATURE HERMS BY NATURE and GodocusignWith DocuSign,you can sign safely and securely from anywhere on your mobile device.So you can sign and close deals any timeeven when you re offline.Seal the deal from 30,000 201652Contents54STRATEGYPlanned Opportunism Weak signalsearly evidence of changes in demography,technology,customer needs,and so forthcan help companies approach the future with fresh perspectives.Vijay Govindarajan62LEADERSHIP“Both/And”Leadership When two goals conflict,ask how you can do both,rather than which one to choose.Wendy K.Smith,Marianne W.Lewis,and Michael L.Tushman72DECISION MAKINGSuperforecastingHow to dramatically improve your companys prediction capability Paul J.H.Schoemaker and Philip E.Tetlock80RISK MANAGEMENTHow to Hedge Your Strategic BetsTo test opportunities in volatile markets,invest in short-term options that can be unwound quickly.George Stalk Jr.and Ashish IyerSPOTLIGHT ON MANAGING FOR AN UNPREDICTABLE FUTUREABOVE Sarah Morris Jardim Botnico(Rio)2013,household gloss paint on canvasON THE COVERPhotography:Bruce Peterson;Styling:Molly SchusterMay 2016Harvard Business Review5Features May 201640THE BIG IDEAEmbracing AgileWith the best of intentions,executives may be eroding the benefits that agile innovation can deliver.Darrell K.Rigby,Jeff Sutherland,and Hirotaka Takeuchi88ORGANIZATIONAL CULTUREIncrease Your Return on FailureMistakes can be incredibly valuableprovided you systematically capture their lessons.Julian Birkinshaw and Martine Haas94THE HBR INTERVIEW“We Need to Intensify Our Sense of Urgency”Customers problems dont get better with age.They get better when you fix them.Hewlett Packard Enterprise CEO Meg Whitman,interviewed by Adi IgnatiusTODD ST.JOHNHBR.ORG6 Harvard Business ReviewMay 2016Departments May 2016IN EVERY ISSUE 10 From the Editor 12 Contributors 18 Interaction 32 Strategic Humor 121 Executive SummariesWhen a mental illness affects an employees work page 109Can a good nights rest make your judgment worse?page 30EXPERIENCE104MANAGING YOURSELFLearn to Love NetworkingFour strategies to help you overcome your aversion and make rewarding connections Tiziana Casciaro,Francesca Gino,and Maryam Kouchaki109CASE STUDY What to Do for a Struggling Colleague?Mental health issues threaten a vital project.John A.Quelch,Carin-Isabel Knoop,and Amy Gallo118SYNTHESISOffice ExposThree books in the genre of office tell-all Daniel McGinn124LIFES WORKIsabel Allende The best-selling novelist on discipline and determination IDEA WATCH24TALENTCreative Job Titles Can Energize WorkersThey improve attitudes and boost recruitment.PLUS The global links among corporate boards,why powerful people perform badly on teams,and more30DEFEND YOUR RESEARCH“Sleeping on It”Doesnt Lead to Better DecisionsSurprising new findings on how sleep affects our mental processes35HOW I DID ITUpworks CEO on How an Introverted Engineer Learned to LeadFor one thing,he sought projects and talked his way into jobs that were outside his comfort zone.Stephane Kasriel35WINNI WINTERMEYER;RAMI NIEMI;SODAVEKTHBR.ORG8 Harvard Business ReviewMay 2016Toward a More Agile Future We l i ve i n a fast-changi ng worl d.But there are sti l l a few certai nti es(beyond,you know,death and taxes).For exampl e:(1)Fai l ure happens,(2)strategy constantl y needs to adapt,and(3)at some poi nt youre goi ng to have to figure out“agi l e.”In thi s i ssue,we try to bri ng fresh perspecti ve to al l three.We al l know that fai l ure i s a cri ti cal part of a successful busi ness journey.But how can we make sure that i ts real l y an i nstructi ve tool?In“Increase Your Return on Fai l ure”(page 88),Jul i an Bi rki nshaw of London Busi ness School and Marti ne Haas of Wharton show that were actual l y not as tol erant of fai l ure as we thi nk.They offer advi ce,nonethel ess,on how to get the most out of i t.In“Pl anned Opportuni sm”(page 54),Tuck professor Vi jay Govi ndarajan descri bes a process for recogni zi ng i mpendi ng change and capi tal i zi ng on i t.The tri ck i s to be sensi ti ve to“weak si gnal s”i n the marketpl aceearl y evi dence of shi fts i n demographi cs,customer tastes,and more.As for agi l e approaches,many managers are just starti ng to real i ze thei r val uenot onl y for technol ogy devel opment but i n a broad range of functi ons.In“Embraci ng Agi l e”(page 40),a tri o of wri tersDarrel l K.Ri gby of Bai n,Jeff Sutherl and of Scrum Inc.,and Hi rotaka Takeuchi of Harvard Busi ness School show how adopti ng agi l e can accel erate growth and i mprove workflow.But for compani es to ful l y benefit,top executi ves need to trul y comprehend and buy i nto the system.Though you cant avoi d the turmoi l of the busi ness l andscape,you can i mprove your odds of succeedi ng ami d i t.