Year: 2018

Before we talk about the human dimension, we need to talk about management itself
by Raymond Hofmann

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In his introduction to the 10th Global Peter Drucker Forum, focussing on the human dimension of management, Richard Straub asks “What place do we give the human in organisations?” and, leaning on Aristotle’s phronesis, argues that “reasserting the human dimension means above all asking the why questions that enable us to ponder deeply who we are, what we do and where we should be going”. He concludes with a strong call to action: “Bearing direct responsibility for confronting these issues in the workplace, management can light the fire – and must do it now, before it is too late.” Worthwhile questions I have no doubt that the Forum, which again brings together the brightest minds […]

Delineating the Human Dimension at Work
by Renuka Abraham

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Management – The Human Dimension – a very valid topic of discussion in the face of businesses scrambling to automate, robotize, and optimize. Remember the days when the human dimension was the only dimension! How did we get to the point that we are debating about this? I asked a couple of colleagues what ‘the human dimension’ meant to them and I got surprisingly different interpretations and perspectives. Was this dispersed knowledge or the so-called Rashomon Effect? Either way, it was quite an eye-opener. Coffee Corner and Watercooler Moments ‘Empathy at the workplace’ was the most common (and obvious) interpretation of the human dimension in management. Often viewed as an antonym of professionalism, empathy has […]

Shifting from Whom to Believe to How to Believe
by Dave Ulrich

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Sometimes deciding whom to believe even when two sides offer differing views of the same event is relatively easy. When a situation involves clear and concrete corroborative evidence, a pattern of behaviors, or compelling witnesses, whom to believe is relatively simple. But frequently, two sides offer differing views about the same event, each with valid reasons for their perspectives. A leader’s intended comments may not represent what followers hear. A customer may experience a product or service in a way the company didn’t intend. A person accused of mistreating another may deny or not acknowledge the charges of the person claiming mistreatment. Two parties to an event may have vastly different memories, understandings, or interpretations […]

When Machines Drive Human Justice!
Arun Nikam

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Even as the main applications of artificial intelligence are currently centered around planning, machine learning (ML), natural language processing (NLP), and robotics – a huge potential lies in the areas of reasoning and decision making. Imagine the impact of something like this in the field of law – where everything depends upon analyzing facts, situations, and circumstances in a rational and impartial manner. Imagine that you can process legal data and take it further to the next level – managing law! Imagine, for example, in 2030 if machines start managing law (ML, artificial intelligence) and formulating legal laws? Can machines do it and are we ready to accept it? Imagine, for example in the year […]

Why Machines Make Human Skills More Important, Not Less
by Mark Esposito

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Lately, we have received quite a number of requests asking us to explain further why artificial intelligence (AI) and robots are unlikely to put humans out of work soon. It may be a contrarian position, but we are definitely optimistic about the future, believing that the displacement of labor won’t turn out to be as gloomy as many are speculating. Despite the endless talk on the threat of machines to human jobs, the truth is that, while we have lost jobs in some areas, we have gained them in others. For instance, the invention of automatic teller machines (ATMs), introduced in the 1960s, ought to have eliminated the need for many bank employees in the […]

Managing the Self: The Power of Rest
by Thomas Bubendorfer

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How to manage the self in today’s over-complex, ever-changing business world with its inexorably increasing workload? To begin, I suggest we address two questions: First, how do we live? And second, who are we? How do we live? As a keynote speaker and coach of executives I have gleaned intimate insights into modern-day business environment: I observe calendars stuffed with meetings often a year in advance. I see that, thanks to first the advent of the Internet, and then, for the last 10 years, smartphones, availability of the individual spans almost every waking hour. Change, restructuring and the ubiquitous “Next Level” programs have ceased to be a passing phase but have become permanent features. I […]

Gandhi and AI: an Unlikely Superhero Team
by Ferose V R

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Gandhi predicted that both capitalism and communism would eventually fail.1 He proposed a third way, called trusteeship,2 which holds tremendous promise. Yet today’s world is more complex than the one that Gandhi inhabited, and so we need new technologies guided by a renewed mindset to navigate the maze of the complex adaptive system that characterizes our cultural, economic, and political reality. To do so, we must begin by discussing thoughtfully, realistically, and compassionately how we can take responsibility for our children, for our planet, and for ensuring a human future, understanding how local actions lead to global effects, and vice versa. The scope of the challenges we face, the shortcomings of current systems, and the […]

Artificial Intelligence as the Voice of Wisdom for Future-Ready IT
Milena Milićević

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During the 1960s, Peter Drucker stated that there isn’t much ‘‘participatory management’’ in Japanese organizations and that was a good thing. He observed that ‘‘everyone who would be affected by the decision knew what it was about – whether he (or she) liked it or not – and was prepared for it. There was no need to sell the decision – it’s been sold.’’ At a time when the business of technology is about moving quickly and in stealth mode, the winning strategy for IT in the 21st century is about leveraging intellectual property, protecting valuable data and deep-pocket investments. Yet what would happen if soon the managerial wisdom in decision-making would be replaced to […]