Dates covered: October 22-28, 2018 (week 43 of 52)
Business
Case Study: A Founder Steps Back from Her Start-Up (via Harvard Business Review)
Stay on with some control? Sell out completely? The author and some CEOs weigh in on pros/cons of different scenarios.
The Promise and Peril of a Star CEO (via Harvard Business Review)
Ex: Papa John’s, Tesla, CBS. 1) Get directors who are independent from the CEO. 2) Directors should meet without the CEO present. 3) Support the CEO’s activities that relate to the company, not ego. 4) Star CEOs look to other stars, not experts. 5) Don’t let the company get into a situation where the star CEO quitting tanks your business.
Why Climate Change and Other Global Problems Are Pushing Some Business Leaders to Embrace Regulation (via Harvard Business Review)
The recent IPCC report recommends limiting global temperature rises to 1.5 deg C (not 2 deg C) by 2030. Many businesses are in favor of more regulation because people are starting to hold companies responsible, and CEOs realize we may not be able to “innovate” our way out in time. The article lists some things leadership can do.
How to hire executives (via The Software Mentor)
This post is a detailed playbook entry on the process and things to consider when hiring individuals that have the most impact on your company.
How the U.S. Can Rebuild Its Capacity to Innovate (via Harvard Business Review)
1) Invest not only in science, but design, engineering, and manufacturing to translate it into a product; 2) VCs don’t typically invest in hardware and manufacturing; need government help here; 3) support small and medium manufacturers; 4) expose students to real-world engineering.
The Motivating (and Demotivating) Effects of Learning Others’ Salaries (via Harvard Business Review)
When employees knew how much more their managers made, the employees worked harder (likely because of aspiration). When an employee knew about their peer’s salary, the effect was reversed. If you’re using salary as a carrot, tie it to a promotion (i.e., change in role). Those studied in this survey were more comfortable knowing what they pay was by role (anonymized), but didn’t want their name attached to the salary.
Research: How Cloud Computing Changed Venture Capital (via Harvard Business Review)
Cloud computing allows people to “rent” compute instead of having to own it. Because this costs less, it allows VCs to make investments in more companies, which leads to more experimentation.
What’s Driving Superstar Companies, Industries, and Cities (via Harvard Business Review)
They spend 2-3 times more on intangible capital such as R&D, have higher shares of foreign revenue, and rely more on acquisitions and inorganic growth than median firms.
HR Leaders Need Stronger Data Skills (via Harvard Business Review)
To find the right people and to tie HR metrics to financial success 1) find ways to get data-driven departments in your company to help, 2) tie data about people to performance and business outcomes, 3) develop data visualization skills, 4) use data to predict needs.
Communication
8 Classic Storytelling Techniques for Engaging Presentations (via The Software Mentor)
1) Hero’s journey; 2) overcoming a mountain; 3) nested narratives; 4) contrast “what is” with “what could be”; 5) start in the middle of the action (in media res); 6) converge multiple stories into a single conclusion; 7) seem to lead them down a predictable path, then reveal something else; 8) have several stories (petals) that all support the same message (flower). I like that each technique has examples of when to use each one.
Becoming a Better Listener (via Pluralsight)
(This course is part of the Communication for Technologists skill path.) Too often we listen to reply instead of listening to understand. This course covers ways to improve your active listening skills (e.g., prepare to teach the content you’re hearing to someone else), provides tips for listening in specific scenarios (e.g., attending a conference, on a phone call), and reviews some methods for speaking so that you make it easy for others to actively listen to you.
How to Gracefully Exclude Coworkers from Meetings, Emails, and Projects (via Harvard Business Review)
Focus on key people to protect them from overload; 2) address social needs by telling people why you’re excluding them (e.g., “I know you have a deadline this week…”); 3) exclusion only hurts when people expect to be included.
Praise Is a Vitamin (via Software Lead Weekly)
Interesting analogy… Most people find it difficult to store praise, so it needs to be replenished regularly. Some people get enough praise through their “diet” at work; others need a supplement. What kind of praise feeds you and how can you go about getting it?
Culture
7 Myths About Coming Out at Work (via Harvard Business Review)
Coming out at work is still a big deal, and is different to LGBTIQ+ people. Some are outed against their will, and others approach people at different times. The article has tips for building a more inclusive workplace, as being your authentic self at work is beneficial on many levels.
Research: Investors Punish Entrepreneurs for Stereotypically Feminine Behaviors (via Harvard Business Review)
A study found the masculinity and femininity (instead of gender) affects how entrepreneurs are perceived by potential investors.
Why “Just Unionize” Doesn’t Work (via The Software Mentor)
The author posits there’s too much supply for junior-level game developer labor to make unions effective, and that one solution is better regulation on developer overtime.
How Managers Can Make Casual Networking Events More Inclusive (via Harvard Business Review)
Although informal, sometimes important conversations happen at networking events that may inadvertently exclude people. Find about your people and how some events may not fit (e.g., working parents, non-drinkers). Don’t include only people like yourself — what about juniors and women of color? Be aware the Western networking culture involves alcohol, which may not fit for everyone. Try scheduling daytime events. Reflect on what kinds of events are happening, who’s involved, and whether those are working or not.
How Lilly Is Getting More Women into Leadership Positions (via Harvard Business Review)
1) It’s not just an HR issue, it’s a business issue; 2) typical engagement surveys don’t go deep enough; 3) why are the numbers what they are? 4) share what you learn in a transparent way; 5) set objectives to change and commit to achieving them
Survey: Tell Us About Your Workplace Relationships (via Harvard Business Review)
This post has a survey about workplace relationships, as they can contribute to greater trust, facilitate information sharing, and engender positive emotional connections. Taken together, this can lead to increased productivity and reduced turnover. How often do they occur? Between whom? And what can better facilitate them?
Leadership
Ask HN: What do you do in your 1-on-1s with your direct reports? (via The Software Mentor)
Although I don’t really care for these threaded forums, it’s worth a few minutes of perusing whether you lead 1:1s or attend them. Taking notes is helpful for many reasons — transparency, helps with listening, keeps everyone accountable.
How to Deal With Your Team Members’ Personal Crises (via The Software Mentor)
You can’t escape the problems people have in their lives; everyone brings their whole self to work. If possible, give people the opportunity to work from home (or delegate tasks to others) if doing so helps them be more productive during a crisis. You’re not required to be a counselor; understand and respect limits.
The 6 Fundamental Skills Every Leader Should Practice (via Harvard Business Review)
Real experience and continual practice > reading books and training courses. 1) Shape a vision that is exciting and challenging for your team (or division/unit/organization). 2) Translate that vision into a clear strategy about what actions to take, and what not to do. 3) Recruit, develop, and reward a team of great people to carry out the strategy. 4) Focus on measurable results. 5) Foster innovation and learning to sustain your team (or organization) and grow new leaders. 6) Lead yourself — know yourself, improve yourself, and manage the appropriate balance in your own life.
Managing a Data Science Team (via Harvard Business Review)
When designing a team, 1) don’t just hire senior people, 2) what matters most is having a creative mind coupled with first rate critical thinking skills, not their degree, 3) hire people of complementing strengths instead of “full stack”, and 4) build a team that reflects the people whose data you’re analyzing.
Why Leaders Don’t Embrace the Skills They’ll Need for the Future (via Harvard Business Review)
Change is difficult, and we typically lead where we’re comfortable (e.g., a caring leader makes people feel safe and valued, but may resist pushing them beyond their current comfort zones, and doesn’t always hold them accountable). Try embracing intermittent discomfort, observe why you make decisions, and design small tests to see what would happen if you behaved differently.
The Role of a Manager Has to Change in 5 Key Ways (via Harvard Business Review)
1) Expand instead of restrict (let employees make decisions), 2) include instead of exclude (create leadership circles to learn), 3) innovate instead of repeat (change when you can, not when you need to), 4) challenge instead of solving problems yourself, 5) think like an entrepreneur instead of an employer.
Process
Use the ‘Five More Rule’ When You’re Feeling Stuck (via Lifehacker)
The “five more” rule helps you keep going (e.g., 5 more minutes, 5 more pages), but this rule can help you start going (e.g., stretch for 5 minutes, read just 5 pages).
Working in quality time instead of clock time (via The Software Mentor)
Not all minutes are equal, and it’s not just about how many minutes you’ve been on the clock. Know when you need creative time and routine time.
You Versus the Clock (via Harvard Business Review)
This was a summary of summaries for recent time management books. Pick Three (Randi Zuckerberg) says to pick three areas for a given day from work, sleep, family, friends, and fitness. The Pomodoro Technique (Francesco Cirillo) aims to reduce interruptions by 30 minutes of indivisible work. Make Time (Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky) suggests cutting out cable news and not using airplane Wi-Fi. Hyperfocus (Chris Bailey) is about paying attention to one meaningful thing at a time. Off the Clock (Laura Vanderkam) reminds us that we need downtime as well.
How to Find Your Greatest Superpower by Asking “Why” (via Software Lead Weekly)
Most of our thoughts are on autopilot about how we make decisions. Stopping to ask “why” we made decisions allows us to see if we’re fulfilling our goals.
Team Choreography (via Software Lead Weekly)
Process != bureaucracy. You need a process to help get a rhythm. Some things to try… bookend your week with meetings (set the tone for the week, check in at the end); consistently and predictably communicate up, out, and down; plan proactively instead of reactively. (Note: I’ve written a book summary about the one mentioned in this post.)
Security
Why Privacy Regulations Don’t Always Do What They’re Meant To (via Harvard Business Review)
Privacy isn’t free. 1) General rules are easy, but encourage “data monopolies”; avoid giving advantages only to the big players; 2) incentivize smaller groups to work together; 3) user consent isn’t enough; there’s just too much data to be fully informed.
Technology
AI’s Potential to Diagnose and Treat Mental Illness (via Harvard Business Review)
AI can help 1) doctors gather and assess patient data; 2) anticipate problems; 3) power chat bots to find individuals that may have issues and don’t want to speak to others directly.
Your Data Literacy Depends on Understanding the Types of Data and How They’re Captured (via Harvard Business Review)
Where and how is your data generated? Where and how is your data stored (e.g., public or private)? Is your data tabular (like a spreadsheet), images, or unstructured (needs a data scientist to structure it)?
Do People Trust Algorithms More Than Companies Realize? (via Harvard Business Review)
This post has some interesting stats about experiments where people were asked to choose advice from a human vs. an algorithm. In general, algorithms are more trusted.