Donald Sull and Charles Sull

RLI’s nimbleness would be impressive for any company but stands out in the typically slow-moving insurance industry.

Mary Ellen Carter, Lisa LaViers, Jason Sandvik and Da Xu

In the debate over whether it’s helpful or hurtful to share employee pay data, consider a new finding: When the SEC mandated CEO‐to‐median‐employee pay disclosures, the information didn’t erode morale—instead it raised average pay satisfaction by giving workers a realistic reference point for their own earnings.

Toby Lester

Jamil Zaki, a psychologist and longtime student of empathy, responds to questions about a variety of topics: his previous writing for HBR on empathy; changing professional attitudes toward empathy in the workplace; the discrepancy between how leaders and employees experience empathy in their organizations; and the effects of AI on perceptions of empathy.

Vanessa Urch Druskat

To create top-performing teams, you need team emotional intelligence. Team EI is a set of habitual routines or norms that together meet the core social needs that are activated when people enter teams. These include the need to feel genuinely accepted, known, and valued; the need to engage in discussions that build a shared understanding of the team’s priorities and experience; and the need to have a genuine sense of influence and agency within the team.

Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez

Many organizations are aware that they are suffering from project overload, slowing execution and obscuring strategic priorities. Yet even with this knowledge they struggle to kill projects to release resources and energy to focus on their most important priorities. The solution is a cultural shift: treat stopping projects as a sign of leadership, not failure.

John Cutler

It might sound like a leader saying, “We can work out the details later. For now it helps to keep options open. We know the big goal, and we are committed to it. The exact path can come later.” That ability to hold off until the last responsible moment—that is the powerful part.

Michaela J. Kerrissey and Julia DiBenigno

While traditional change management emphasizes gradual tactics like pursuing small wins and building coalitions, in turbulent times these gradual tactics aren’t necessary—and they can hold leaders back from taking advantage of bigger opportunities. Research from healthcare settings during Covid show that both senior leaders and frontline managers are more successful at prompting change during turbulent times when they do three things.

Chantal Kapani

AI adoption is soaring and tech leaders tout big gains, but LeadDev’s AI Impact Report 2025 shows the real challenge is measuring meaningful impact.

Johanna Rothman

Is your team ever surprised by how long things take? Do you hear things such as: Team members say, “I've been waiting for code review for more than 2 days.” (See Measure Cycle Time, Not Velocity to see the various durations for solo, cooperative, and collaborative work. Cycle time is a team-based measure of feedback […]