The Idolbuster

NOVEMBER 15, 2012

from Cal Tech in Chemical Engineering, and worked after grad school for the Boston Consulting Group. What impact do you think Janet’s dual identity had on her response to difficult political situations at the company? <<Previous Most people seem like “Janet Wolf” caught between competing identities. Janet has a Ph.D.

Execution 50

Execution Power Chemicals Engineering 50

Harvard Business Review

FEBRUARY 16, 2016

presidential election season upon us, what political issues most concern business leaders? Aside from these three broad worries, directors are also anxious about corporate tax rates, political instability, and healthcare costs. chemicals, metals & mining, paper & forest products). With the 2016 U.S.

Politics 8

Politics Telecommunications Policies Biotechnology 8

The Recovering Engineer

FEBRUARY 27, 2010

In that post, I listed a number of things common to the political process that are terrible examples of how to behave when you are really trying to solve a problem or resolve a conflict. He has degrees in Chemical Engineering and he served as a Nuclear Engineering officer in the U.S.

Health Care 102

Health Care Engineering System Politics 102

The Recovering Engineer

FEBRUARY 27, 2010

In that post, I listed a number of things common to the political process that are terrible examples of how to behave when you are really trying to solve a problem or resolve a conflict. He has degrees in Chemical Engineering and he served as a Nuclear Engineering officer in the U.S.

Health Care 102

Health Care Engineering System Politics 102

Harvard Business Review

MAY 26, 2016

Firms engage in political “rent seeking”—lobbying for regulations that provide them sheltered markets—rather than competing on innovation. So which is it — political rent seeking or cutting-edge investments? If so, then high profits portend diminished productivity growth.

Pharmaceuticals 10

Pharmaceuticals Politics Price Chemicals 10

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 4, 2014

The cheerleaders cite an array of heartening examples, including a $4 billion investment by Dow Chemical to boost its ethylene and propylene capacity on the U.S. manufacturing comeback as “a cruel political hoax.” Clear winners are chemicals and petrochemicals (e.g., manufacturing. But is this revival for real?

Chemicals 8

Chemicals Automotive Supply Chain Offshoring 8

Harvard Business Review

AUGUST 22, 2011

Launching first in an emerging market is seen as a nonstarter because of commercial, regulatory, and political risks. Miniature wells patterned onto the paper contain chemicals that react with samples of blood, urine, saliva, or sweat, which causes the paper to display a reading with a change of color. market last in some cases.

Marketing 12

Marketing Chemicals Resistance Guidelines 12

Harvard Business Review

APRIL 25, 2017

That is, they do for creative problem-solving what catalysts do in chemical processes: they dissolve barriers and accelerate progress down more productive pathways. Take the question that has lately been put on the political table because of the prosperity bind facing so many mature economies.

Drucker 9

Drucker Apparel Chemicals Globalization 9

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 26, 2013

Attacking "other" greenhouse gases , those that can be much more powerful warming agents than CO2, such as methane (which comes from animals/farms, natural gas leaks, and landfills) and HFCs (the class of chemicals used in refrigerants). But I''d like to see our political leaders really grasp the opportunity here. And it should.

Payback Period 8

Payback Period Energy Politics Efficiency 8

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 4, 2017

He highlights the short-term focus of financial markets and of political systems, and also the need to change consumer preferences and habits, as three big areas that need to change at the system level. Chairman and CEO, the Dow Chemical Company , and Executive Chairman, DowDuPont. Andrew Liveris.

Project 8

Project Advice Henderson Short-term 8

Harvard Business Review

JULY 5, 2011

By simply locking in relatively lower tariffs and farm subsidies, each group could secure much commercial advantage, especially in a world where heightened political risk could lead to policy reversals. From a political perspective, sectoral market opening is likely to reduce political support for broader multisector negotiations.

Strategy 9

Strategy Globalization Politics Telecommunications 9

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 19, 2018

the danger that the newcomer will clash for political or personality reasons with members of the leadership team). This means considering whether you can use other members of the senior team to do all or parts of the strategy role. Don’t underestimate the importance of cultural fit.

Strategy 8

Strategy Chief Financial Officer Short-term Chief Information Officer 8

Harvard Business Review

FEBRUARY 22, 2017

In previous work we found that cybersecurity ranked as a top political issue for corporate directors, trailing only the economy and the regulatory environment. chemicals, metals & mining, paper & forest products). apparel, automobiles, retailing, media, hotels, restaurants & leisure); Consumer Staples (e.g.,

Telecommunications 8

Telecommunications Health Care Contingency Plans Biotechnology 8

Harvard Business Review

APRIL 4, 2016

But just four months into his new job, as a business unit leader at a large specialty chemicals and plastics manufacturer, he was struggling with the challenges of handling a global business with more than 3000 employees. The biggest challenges onboarding leaders face typically have to do with culture and politics.

Learning Curve 8

Learning Curve Execution Competitive Advantage Chemicals 8

First Friday Book Synopsis

APRIL 28, 2012

I agree with Peter Drucker that no business, regardless of what the federal government does, can expect much control over the major forces shaping the world. Here is an excerpt from an article written by Rick Wartzman for Bloomberg Businessweek magazine “The Drucker Difference” series.

Drucker 80

Drucker Uncertainty Magazine Article 80

Harvard Business Review

NOVEMBER 19, 2012

The good news is that bad relationship conflicts don't occur as often because virtual team members are typically focused more on their work and less on interpersonal issues and office politics. Hence, "bad blood" is less likely to develop between co-workers. There are several advantages in doing so: Problems don't fester.

Team 15

Team Management How To Consensus 15

Harvard Business Review

MAY 20, 2013

Do we really want to subject our CEOs to the same checks and balances as our political leaders? A big part of the attraction of the corporate structure is that it allows for both quicker and more-long-term-oriented decision-making than the political process tends to produce. Those are both somewhat dubious assertions.

Banking 8

Banking Crisis CEO Long-term 8

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 21, 2011

Choose owners who not only have experience in the process area, but also have charisma, good relations with senior leaders, political savvy, and the ability to persuade. A chemical company identified seven key process performance measures for each of its seven "value chains."

Process 15

Process Supply Chain Balanced Scorecard Engineering 15

Harvard Business Review

AUGUST 15, 2012

As has been documented in Fortune , former directors of Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, Washington Mutual, and Wachovia Bank resurfaced in no time on other corporate boards like Verizon, Dow Chemical, Hewlett Packard, and Nike.

Ethics 11

Ethics Chemicals Short-term Report 11

Harvard Business Review

APRIL 4, 2016

But despite perceptions of entrenched corruption, economic turbulence, and political risk, many big firms have invested and maintained a presence in the country. Russia has always been seen as a challenging place to do business, especially among Western multinationals.

Depreciation 8

Depreciation B2B Price Crisis 8

Harvard Business Review

SEPTEMBER 13, 2011

The idea for these groups grew out of the growing movement to form small affinity groups to deal with everything from chemical dependency, religious study, and personal grief to book and cooking groups. We decided to get together each week to carry on our discussions. Believe it or not, we have met every Wednesday morning from 7:15-8:30 a.m.

Open-book 9

Open-book Chemicals Chief Operating Officer Goleman 9

Harvard Business Review

OCTOBER 28, 2014

At the hoary age of 128, it had already beat the odds twice over when it lost its place to chemical maker LyondellBasell at close of trading this year on September 4 th. Founded in 1886 as a mail-order watch retailer, Sears was already 71 when it became an original member of the S&P 500 in 1957.

Retail 8

Retail Quinn Real Estate Apparel 8

The Recovering Engineer

JUNE 27, 2010

where President Barack Obama accepted his resignation I have not seen the article containing the reportedly insubordinate comments, and I am not attempting to make any political statement concerning General McChrystal or President Obama. He has degrees in Chemical Engineering and he served as a Nuclear Engineering officer in the U.S.

Leadership 248

Leadership Engineering FAQ Video 248

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 7, 2013

In nature, barriers — between organic and inorganic chemicals, between land and sea, between species, between everything — have been built, tested, overcome, rebuilt, and overcome again with almost endless repetition.

Chemicals 8

Chemicals Open-book Technology System 8

Harvard Business Review

JULY 21, 2017

I reached out to him because I was impressed with how he steered DSM from its chemicals company past to its broad, science-based innovator present; from a Dutch company to a global player; and from a completely male-run organization to a more gender balanced leadership team.

Diversity 8

Diversity CFO Globalization Video 8

Building Personal Strength

NOVEMBER 8, 2010

The politics surrounding this issue has made it difficult to sponsor research, and its hard to do this kind of research on human subjects. If this chemical process is thrown out of balance, sexuality in the brain can easily fail to develop normally. I first read the book over 10 years ago.

Video 105

Video Insurance Blog Learning-by-Doing 105

Coaching Tip

APRIL 28, 2012

Could a single molecule—one chemical substance—lie at the very center of our moral lives? In our blood and in the brain, oxytocin appears to be the chemical elixir that creates bonds of trust not just in our intimate relationships but also in our business dealings, in politics and in society at large.

Morale 105

Morale System Chemicals Bond 105

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 17, 2012

Companies don't just remove toxic chemicals from products because it's the right thing to do; they do so because their heavily female consumer base demands it. Likewise, women need to recognize and wield their political power to influence the many politicians they helped put in office.

Marketing 8

Marketing Energy Globalization Chemicals 8

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 20, 2011

In a similar vein, Dow Chemical launched a 5-year, $10 million partnership with The Nature Conservancy to "value nature" (so called "ecosystem services") as an input into their businesses. Whatever your politics, ignoring or dismissing this movement is a big mistake. The total: 145 million euros.

Supply Chain 15

Supply Chain Apparel P&L Long-term 15

Great Leadership By Dan

NOVEMBER 27, 2012

Reactions to our political leaders, sports heroes, and other role models crying are mixed. So, as managers, we need to let go of stereotypes and perceptions about crying and recognize it for what it is – a chemical reaction. Fast forward to 2012: President Obama cried at a meeting with his campaign staff.

Chemicals 255

Chemicals Consensus Sports Follow-up 255

Harvard Business Review

MARCH 22, 2017

Adjusting to new economic realities as well as political and economic uncertainties will require making their supply chains much more resilient. Of the major manufacturing sectors, only chemicals, food, and beverages and tobacco products saw a meaningful increase in the number of firms. Census Bureau data.

Supply Chain 10

Supply Chain Chemicals Uncertainty Policies 10

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 19, 2014

All the major players in the personal care product value chain — the giants of consumer products, chemicals, and fragrances — were there (as was I). And here’s what to watch out for in 2015: Political winds shifting. My gut says it won’t matter too much.

Chemicals 12

Chemicals Short-term Energy Report 12

Harvard Business Review

NOVEMBER 13, 2012

The numbers discussion then seeped over from polls to other politically charged topics such as climate change. Dow Chemical has reduced energy costs $9 billion since 1994. Let's not let politics or fear of the size of the task ahead get in the way of today's climate math. Climate data has trumped politics in the past.

McKinsey 8

McKinsey GDP Cost-Benefit Analysis Constraint 8

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 6, 2018

In other words, the Chinese government’s objection had been political rather than legal all along. Qualcomm quickly stated that there would be no new proposal. But the important point here is that the main U.S.

Globalization 10

Globalization Proposal Bureaucracy Chemicals 10

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 20, 2016

With the support of chemical companies , more than 170 countries also agreed to phase out HFCs , the high global-warming-potential chemicals used in air-conditioners and refrigerators everywhere. I’ve already mentioned the historic Paris agreement, but there are more positive steps worth noting.

Energy 8

Energy Banking Chemicals Globalization 8

Harvard Business Review

OCTOBER 30, 2015

election cycle is on track to break political spending records — and corporate contributions will be a large part of that. More than ever, it is the directors’ responsibility to determine when and how their company should engage in political activities. The 2016 U.S. Our contention is no. Consider what Aetna faced in 2012.

Politics 8

Politics Committee CPA Policies 8

Harvard Business Review

AUGUST 23, 2016

Are corporate boards as polarized politically as the general population? Female directors are much more evenly split between the two main political parties. The ideological divisions we’re seeing in the political arena have permeated the boardroom.

Politics 8

Politics Committee Telecommunications Diversity 8