Leading Blog

APRIL 16, 2021

There are many ways that even a good business with good leadership can be damaged or bankrupted. To this day, I get excited about seeing Subaru’s new products and learning about the engineering that went into making them. Bad things happen to good people just as bad things happen to good businesses.

Learning-by-Doing 255

Learning-by-Doing Long-term Automotive Open-book 255

Harvard Business Review

MAY 2, 2018

It first influenced business decades ago, through the development of an unmistakably hard skill that senior managers must master: strategic planning. In my over five years of work with Intel, scenario planning provided extensive insights and innovations, earning recognition from top leadership as an essential strategy tool.

Scenario Planning 12

Scenario Planning Strategic Planning Kleiner Management 12

Harvard Business Review

JULY 2, 2012

Carlos Ghosn, Chairman and CEO of the Renault-Nissan Alliance, famously coined the term "frugal engineering" in 2006. He was impressed by Indian engineers' ability to innovate cost-effectively and quickly under severe resource constraints. Yet engineers and scientists love challenges.

CEO 15

CEO Innovation Constraint Engineering 15

Harvard Business Review

FEBRUARY 2, 2018

An aircraft engine is unlikely to become a purely digital product any time soon! But who is likely to assume leadership in creating and capturing economic value in Type 3 products: Digital natives or industry incumbents? Companies like Rolls Royce design and manufacture jet engines. Ford or Tesla? Rolls Royce or IBM?

Industry 8

Industry Software Six Sigma Engineering 8

Great Leadership By Dan

JUNE 7, 2018

With One Ford, he put the purpose and values of the Ford brand at the center of the organization and unified the company’s people, plans, operations, and products to restore the brand to automotive leadership.

Brand 193

Brand BPR FOB Automotive 193

Harvard Business Review

MARCH 26, 2012

Because they try to repeat their past success formulas — the ones that work so well for them in developed markets. This was the case at Harman , which had achieved extraordinary success in the high-end automotive infotainment systems for luxury cars. As they develop, poor countries will catch up with rich ones.

Chief Technology Officer 12

Chief Technology Officer CTO Constraint Engineering 12

Harvard Business Review

FEBRUARY 12, 2016

Thanks to the proliferation of smartphones, brand and online-shopping websites, social media, and vehicle connectivity, businesses have a unique opportunity to use technology to revolutionize the customer experience and to incorporate the voice of the customer into product development. The CoE elevated the issue to the engineering leads.

Media 8

Media Automotive Globalization Active Listening 8

Harvard Business Review

MAY 14, 2015

Classic leadership lessons apply. Developing and deploying new technology requires building a supportive ecosystem surrounding it. The Open Automotive Alliance started in January 2014 with Google and General Motors as founding members; other technology companies and auto competitors soon joined. Enter a coalition.

Project 8

Project Transportation Construction Automotive 8

Harvard Business Review

FEBRUARY 2, 2015

Science and engineering professionals work closely with experienced technicians to produce next-generation batteries, not forged metal. Indeed, in a world where globalization and rapid technological changes are the norm, manufacturing, high-tech development, and innovation clearly require a different level of support. But just as U.S.

Industry 8

Industry McKinsey Engineering Innovation 8

Harvard Business Review

SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

Don’t let your engineers hack together workarounds that will need to be maintained down the road; provide real engineering solutions to the types of problems new software has. Your customer feedback is coming in through a variety of channels: phone calls to founders, emails to engineers, even the occasional text message.

Metrics 13

Metrics Engineering Efficiency Learning-by-Doing 13

Harvard Business Review

MAY 19, 2011

Ford reengineered its global product development process so that an engineering plan designed in Detroit can drive the shop floor in a European factory. Its tool and engineering cycle time dropped 50% from 2004 to 2009, costs went down and it produces higher-quality products. Collaborating globally to improve effectiveness.

Process 15

Process Press Release Automotive Globalization 15

Harvard Business Review

MARCH 24, 2017

You are the newly promoted vice president of business development at an oil company. The tightly-controlled automotive company fostered a mentality where the lower ranks faced immense pressure to achieve the company’s business objectives. Picture this. Your first assignment is to land an oil field services contract abroad.

Ethics 8

Ethics Company Incentives Policies 8

Harvard Business Review

NOVEMBER 9, 2011

COOs are relatively common in service industries such as financial services, energy, information technology and telecommunications, but in manufacturing sectors — such as automotive, chemical, and pharmaceutical companies — they are relatively rare.

COO 12

COO Sample Telecommunications Automotive 12

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 17, 2014

And the more growth opportunities stretch beyond a company’s current capabilities, the more the company needs to build systems to manage the unique nature of these opportunities (the kind we describe in more depth in our recent article “ Build an Innovation Engine in 90 Days ” and our 2012 e-book Building a Growth Factory ).

Innovation 9

Innovation Company Venture Capitalist Business Model 9

Harvard Business Review

OCTOBER 4, 2011

Platforms of engagement, based on human experiences, are the new loci of value creation and therefore the new engines of capitalism. Apple under the leadership of Steve Jobs offers a metaphor for the future role of the CEO as a co-creative engagement orchestrator.

CEO 10

CEO Creativity Automotive Participative 10

Great Leadership By Dan

MARCH 7, 2016

New DDI research explores leadership differences between men and women and makes the case for gender diversity in the workplace. DDI’s High-Resolution Leadership study reviewed true assessment data from 10,000 global leaders and found no difference in the battle of the sexes for leadership skills.

Diversity 120

Diversity Globalization Transportation Industry 120

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 5, 2014

And the sheer complexity of building cars also plays a role — David Cole, the former head of the Center for Automotive Research (and son of a former GM president), insists that this is really what’s behind the ignition switch error and why it was so hard for the company to get to the bottom of the problem.

Root Cause Analysis 8

Root Cause Analysis Edmondson Industry CEO 8

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 15, 2017

1 — Consistent Leadership Over Time Matters in This Market. PepsiCo developed an entire line of snack foods, Kurkure, just for India, while Whirlpool designed its washing machines to attract Indian buyers who preferred hand washing. Homegrown automotive companies such as Tata Motors can be formidable partners or competitors.

CEO 10

CEO Long-term Short-term Mass Marketing 10

Harvard Business Review

APRIL 20, 2016

You’re competing against platforms like Uber in transportation, Google in automotive, Airbnb in hospitality, LinkedIn in recruiting, Netflix in television, and the list goes on. Pratt & Whitney has partnered with IBM to enhance its engine management offering. Build an adaptive organization with the right leadership structure.

Software 8

Software Company Airlines Business Model 8

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 7, 2012

GM lost the ability to demonstrate leadership in a time where the advertising and automotive industries are flailing. Our engineers have also been working with Facebook engineers to develop unique and safer ways of integrating the car experience with Facebook.". Facebook is not without fault however.

Advertising 15

Advertising Storytelling IPO Automotive 15

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 7, 2012

GM lost the ability to demonstrate leadership in a time where the advertising and automotive industries are flailing. Our engineers have also been working with Facebook engineers to develop unique and safer ways of integrating the car experience with Facebook.". Facebook is not without fault however.

Advertising 13

Advertising Storytelling IPO Automotive 13

N2Growth Blog

JANUARY 10, 2017

Systems Engineer. DEADS: Data Engineer and Data Scientist. Machine Learning Engineer. Developers do not program cognitive systems in a conventional sense, but rather a corpus of information is created for a specific domain set. To: AI/Cognitive Era. Database Administrator (DBA). Taxonomy (or Digital) Curator. Programmer.

Positioning 150

Positioning Company Engineering Incubator 150

Harvard Business Review

MARCH 20, 2014

The switches could, if bumped or weighed down by a heavy key ring, cut off engine power and disable air bags. According to another , “GM has said the issue was discovered as early as 2001, and in 2004, a company engineer ran into the problem during the testing phase of the soon-to-be-released Chevrolet Cobalt.”.

Report 8

Report Learning-by-Doing Crisis Management CEO 8

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 13, 2016

A team of engineers, designers, operations specialists, and clinicians was assembled and led by an experienced, well-respected physician “chief engineer” whose vision for the future of care was disruptive. Develop a complete understanding of the system. Create a dedicated multidisciplinary team. Protect the work.

Health Care 8

Health Care Innovation Insurance P&L 8