| | |  | | October 25, 2017 | | |  | | | | Read online | | | | The best-performing CEO of 2017 is... | | | | | | From Amy Bernstein
Editor, Harvard Business Review | | | Identifying the best-performing CEOs in the world is a daunting task. And if you evaluated the 100 leaders on our 2017 list on financial metrics alone, Amazon's Jeff Bezos would sit in first place. But we've been tweaking the list's formula for a while now, trying to find the right balance between financial performance and measures of environmental and social impact and governance. We think we've hit on a pretty good approach, one that highlights the tough trade-offs CEOs have to make between short-term, parochial goals and broader, long-term aspirations. Factoring in these calculations, Bezos falls to 71 and Pablo Isla, CEO of Inditex (the parent of Zara), comes out on top. According to Isla, who's run the Spanish fashion retailing giant since 2005, the job never gets easier. As he told senior editor Dan McGinn, "Our business model, fashion, is changing all the time. So what I can tell you is that this is a fascinating job, and every day is like the first day, full of surprises."
How does an ambitious but inexperienced professional grow into a leader like Pablo Isla? Apparently, not through leadership development programs. In "Turning Potential into Success," Claudio Fernández-Aráoz, Andrew Roscoe, and Kentaro Aramaki — all three from Egon Zehnder, where they've been studying executive potential for 30 years — assert that more than 75% of senior leaders have little faith in these programs. They argue that a more scientific approach is in order — and they sketch one out in remarkable and useful detail.
In "Stop Doubling Down on Your Failing Strategy," Freek Vermeulen and Niro Sivanathan of London Business School examine why it's so hard to give up on a plan, even in the face of overwhelming evidence that you should switch course. This behavior, which has led to the downfall of more than a few business leaders, is rooted in sociological and psychological dynamics present in all organizations. Did you know, for example, that even the way you count votes when making a group decision can lead you down the wrong strategic road?
Finally, when most of us think of augmented reality (AR), the technology that imposes digital images on the physical world, we conjure up images of Pokémon Go monsters or weird Snapchat bunny ears. But authors Michael Porter of Harvard Business School and Jim Heppelman of PTC argue compellingly that AR will "change how enterprises serve customers, train employees, design and create products, and…ultimately, how they compete." Even if you don't think AR has a place in your business — especially if you don't think AR has a place in your business — you owe it to yourself to read "Why Every Organization Needs an Augmented Reality Strategy." I think it'll change your mind.
Thanks for reading,
Amy Bernstein | | | | In the Issue: | | | | | | | | | Our annual ranking is back, this time with a new leader in the number one spot: Pablo Isla, the CEO of Inditex, which is the parent of retail fashion chains including Zara. Since Isla took over in 2005, the company has opened a store a day, on average, a global expansion that's resulted in a sevenfold increase in market value. Inditex also scores high on environmental, social, and governance factors, propelling Isla past Amazon's Jeff Bezos and many other CEOs. But these are only two of the names in our full ranking — did your company's CEO make the list? | | | | | | | | | | | | | Managers at most companies want to identify and support high-potential employees, but evidence shows they're pretty bad at it: 66% of firms invest in leadership development programs, but only 24% of senior executives say these programs are successful. "There must be a better way!" you say. And there is: This article, by experts at the global executive search firm Egon Zehnder, lays it out. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Nokia. Kodak. HMV. One thing these companies have in common is a phenomenon known as escalation of commitment: when executives hold too tightly to a strategy that is no longer successful. There are psychological and sociological reasons for it; this article untangles the research using fascinating and often surprising examples. It offers six rules to keep in mind whenever your company has to make decisions. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | This is the most important thing you'll read on augmented reality and business this year. And if you can get your hands on a smartphone and a copy of the magazine, we've included a little bit of AR fun in the article too. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Now you can have the most important ideas on management all in one place in a set of HBR's 10 Must Reads, available as a 14-volume paperback boxed set or as an ebook set. We've combed through hundreds of Harvard Business Review articles and selected the most important ones to help you maximize your own and your organization's performance. | | | | HBR’s 10 Must Reads Ultimate Boxed Set makes a smart gift for your team, colleagues, or clients. These books offer essential reading selected from the pages of Harvard Business Review on topics critical to the success of every manager. Build your business library with advice and inspiration from leading experts such as Clayton Christensen, Peter Drucker, Rosabeth Moss Kanter, John Kotter, Michael Porter, Daniel Goleman, Theodore Levitt, and Rita Gunther McGrath. Get the 14-volume collection as a paperback boxed set or ebook set, and save more than 10% off the individual components. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
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