The connection between ever-present office politics and personal branding may appear to be something of a stretch. Closer examination reveals their interdependence. Dr. Kathleen Kelly Reardon is an expert on navigating office politics. In her book, The Secret Handshake – Mastering The Politics of the Business Inner Circle, Dr. Reardon’s research validates the importance of personal branding. She writes about a young woman who declined her mentor’s advice regarding the importance of attending a company … Continue Reading

Study groups are an integral part of MBA programs, meant to simulate the real-life corporate world of working in teams. Although the intent is to encourage people to develop a collaborative mindset, often the reality is bullying, wannabe leaders, peer criticism, and anxiety about speaking out, derail students from actively participating. Instead of the intentional joining of forces, the result is friction and a total lack of productivity. When a corporate team clicks, there are … Continue Reading

A fact of corporate life is that presentations are extremely important. A popular myth of corporate life is that leaders are inherently endowed with presentation skills. And yet, nothing could be further from the truth! Even seasoned leaders struggle with presentation anxiety. They may attempt to conceal their apprehension through false bravado but the underlying fear is there. The absolute finest presenters, in our experience, have faced these fears courageously. This is not an overstatement … Continue Reading

Consider the proverb “clothes make the man.” Although often attributed to Shakespeare, its origins lie in the classical Greek saying, “the man is his clothing.” Today, “the woman is her clothing.” This is, indeed, a significant principle for women aspiring to high-profile roles. Why, then, are many ambitious women ambivalent about the importance of appearance, notably, their apparel choices? Think of the endless dialogue surrounding Hillary Rodham Clinton’s wardrobe of pantsuits.It sends a clear message … Continue Reading

The Center for Talent Innovation holds an impressive record for both defining the essence of corporate talent challenges, and proposing solutions. At its helm, President and Founder Sylvia Ann Hewlett has her finger on the pulse of what’s making waves across every organizational level, including the current preoccupation with Millennials. The Center for Talent Innovation (CTI) regularly publishes carefully researched reports on its findings. During a recent study, Misunderstood Millennial Talent, Dr. Hewlett lead the … Continue Reading

In the final days of last year, among the endless Best-of-2017-lists, a book described by the New York Times as a “well-told book about leadership, one that intelligently masquerades as a book about sports,” caught our attention. Entitled The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates the World’s Greatest Teams, by Sam Walker, the book was also widely praised as one of the best business books of the year on many fronts including CNBC and … Continue Reading

The powerful concept of growth mindset that drives high performance continues to gain traction within the corporate world. Introduced by world-renowned psychologist Carol Dweck, following decades of research on achievement and success, growth mindset is what drives people to achieve goals. In her book, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, Dr. Dweck distinguishes between people with a growth mindset, who recognize that abilities and talents can be developed, from people with a fixed mindset, who … Continue Reading

We’ll return to our regular publication agenda the week of January 8, 2018. We’re very pleased to announce a new series of Executive Presence video tips – scheduled to launch in February. Throughout the holiday period, we’re available to plan meetings and consultations. Please call or email us. We hope you enjoy the festive season, as a brief yet peaceful interlude before the whirlwind activities of 2018 begin! Warm wishes for this upcoming holiday season … Continue Reading

Recently I attended the Leading High Growth Businesses at Harvard University. The workshop was part of a pilot program designed by Harvard for women leaders of fast-growth companies who wanted to strategically super-charge their corporate plan. 58 companies were represented from all over the world. After the weeklong workshop, 19 plus pages of notes and three sleepless nights (as I was so inspired from the day’s learning), I’ve distilled six important takeaways that can be … Continue Reading