Business: Culture Change

In this article, we’ll examine the environments in which we live and work, taking a moment to reflect on how they make us feel. We’ll also consider how to create explicit moments for practicing reflection and helping us make meaningful work. This need not be work that is saving-the-world meaningful, but simply work that is personally meaningful.

Consider meaningfulness in connection with this definition of behavior: “The way in which one acts or conducts oneself, especially toward others.”

• Who makes us feel the way we feel and why?
• How does the environment play a role?
• Do we have an explicit role to play in our environment?
• How can we create an environment that thrives, and why is this important?

This article builds on the ideas in our earlier article “Fostering Learning Environments to Generate Sparkle.” Read More

Having to deal with a lot of information from different fields gives us an overview of where we stand in the big picture, but at the same time, it can restrict and sometimes confuse or shift our way of thinking. When there’s too much information, making decisions becomes more and more difficult. To think clearly, without undue influence from one perspective or another, we need to focus our thoughts rather than trust everything we know equally. Clarity comes with less information.

While learning new things often delivers higher performance and greater opportunities, it can be quite challenging. But it’s definitely not limiting. Although learning new things is hard, what’s even more difficult is trying to unlearn our existing mindsets, methods, and behaviors. We should never let them limit our success. Read More

Shifting trends are forcing technology companies to reimagine their value proposition. IBM has chosen to create disruption through design. In embracing the future, the company is essentially invoking its past. Back in 1956, IBM was the first large company to establish a corporate-wide design program. But this time, the company’s goals are more ambitious.

Recently, we interviewed Karel Vredenburg, Director of IBM Design’s worldwide client program and head of IBM Studios in Canada, who told us, “We’ve put everything into this transformation.” The company is investing more than $100 million in becoming design centered. Read More