This week’s New York Times reported that China is now the second largest economy in the world. Anyone who reads newspapers would say that this is not exactly unexpected news since this economy was steadily growing for years. And you may have guessed HBR’s Chris Meyer and Julia Kirby wrote an interesting article about it. They suggest that:

“China’s increasing dominance will rewrite the rules of capitalism for everyone.”

Then the authors make the point that:

“as the center of gravity of global trade shifts toward China, the western style capitalism, with its heavy emphasis on free markets and private ownership, will no longer hold sway.”

They also suggest that unlike Japan (which followed America’s 20^th century model), China may instead influence capitalism to evolve towards “an era of post-Western economics”.

Now a few questions to consider:

• What might this mean for the world?
• Will China’s increasing dominance rewrite the rules of capitalism?
• If so, how?
• What else will change/evolve?

What are your thoughts?

Today I was reflecting on an article by The Economist related to BP chief executive Tony Hayward’s huge payout when he stepped down after just three years in the job. He was paid a year’s salary, £1m ($1.6m) + a pension worth £11m ($17.6m) = £11m ($19.2m). Coincidentally on the same day BP revealed a quarterly loss of £17 ($27.2) billion due to the cost of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Then I started to wonder. What is wrong with this picture? Is there anything wrong in Tony Hayward accepting such a generous payment? The Economist has a long list of golden parachutes being paid to various executives, despite the fact that some of them were less than successful.

I understand that they may be entitled to it due to contract conditions etc, but how does one sleep at night knowing the extend of the natural disaster caused? What is the value of integrity? What would a Smart Leader do?What is your opinion on Golden Parachute payouts to CEOs that caused losses of billions of dollars? Is this OK? YES/NO? Why?

This article is a must read for anyone interested in project, program and portfolio management.  This white paper is written by Harvey A. Levine and discusses why more and more companies are experiencing a paradigm shift from selecting and managing projects (small picture) to a broader perspective and looking at a collection of projects (portfolio), their best fit within the strategy and added value to the enterprise.

“This shift is bringing constructive change to the way that projects are selected, how they are managed, and  how the firms are organized to bring direction, structure, and oversight to the processes.”

We’ve all experienced the impact of negative people. They can have quite an unwelcome influence on you or your stakeholders. They can strike at any time, usually in least appropriate moment. So what do you do? How do you ensure that a negative person doesn’t spread their influence? How do you deal with a negative person?

Don’t get into an argument. Don’t to debate with a negative person. A negative person likely has very staunch views and isn’t going to change that just because of what you said.
Empathize with them. Have you ever been annoyed by something before, then have someone tell you to relax? People who are negative (or upset for that matter) benefit more from an empathetic ear than suggestions/solutions.
Lend a helping hand. Some people complain as a way of crying for help. Take the onus to lend a helping hand.
Stick to light topics. Some negative people are triggered by certain topics. Simple things like new movies, daily occurrences, common friends, make for light conversation. Keep it to areas the person feels positive towards.

Ignore the negative comments. If he/she goes into a negative swirl, ignore it or give a simple “I see” or “OK” reply. On the other hand, when he/she is being positive, reply in affirmation and enthusiasm.
Praise the person for the positive things. Negative people aren’t just negative to others. Recognize the positive things and praise them for it.
Hang out in groups of three or more. Having someone else in the conversation works wonders in easing the load. In a 1-1 communication, all the negativity will be directed towards you.
Be responsible for your reaction.  Take responsibility for your perceptions. For every trait, you can interpret it in a positive and a negative manner.
Reduce contact with them or avoid them. If all else fails avoid them altogether. Your time is precious, so spend it with people who have positive effects on you.

What are your tips on dealing with negative people?

Above is based on article by Celestine Chua

As per previous post about Women this is another way how we are being stereotyped at work. This post as the previous one is based on an excellent work of Margaret Heffernan.


The Superhero. In the old days of command-and-control, the heroic model of leadership reigned supreme.
The Nerd. Silent number-crunchers are assumed to be brilliant but emotionally under-developed.
The Green Beret. Loyal, dedicated and apparently impervious to exhaustion, this executive will work every working hour to put out a fire.
The Mom. These days, most dads want to know their kids before they’re grown up — and  moms can’t have careers unless childcare is shared. It’s more acceptable than ever for men to participate in parenting, but it can make for a tough ride at work.

So what are the stereotypes that block male careers?

You probably can’t avoid all of them all the time, but you can do a few things to mitigate the damage when they assail you:

1. See each stereotype for what it is: a trap. Don’t blame yourself — but don’t let the trap change your behavior.
2. Do nothing to reinforce the stereotype. This is the most dangerous aspect of stereotypes. When people want you to be a superhero, it’s tempting but dangerous to think you can satisfy them indefinitely.
3. Cleave to the colleagues and friends — men and women — who see the whole you. We all need other people to remind us of the best that we can be.

What other stereotypes have you seen at work?

Stereotypes bedevil the hiring process and they torment ambitious professionals in their careers. But they’re impossible to eradicate. Professional stereotypes are dangerous because they box you in and limit what people think you can do. Research repeatedly shows that stereotypes are a major cause of the gender gap — the failure of women to be paid and promoted at a rate equal to men. So what are the stereotypes that women’s careers suffer from?

The Geisha: When you start out in your career, you’re young, pretty and eager to please. But being too charming can make others think that’s all you bring to the table.
The Invisible Woman: You don’t want to be trivialized as charming, so you keep your head down and just work like crazy.
The Bitch: If you’re not a pretty geisha or invisible, one day you’ll be called a bitch.
The Guy: If you survive the first three stereotypes, you may finally become an honorary guy.

I think above stereotypes are inescapable: some lucky women escape a few of them but I don’t think I’ve yet met anyone who dodged them all. You can’t avoid this but you can mitigate the damage:

1. Be aware you’re being stereotyped and recognize that this isn’t your fault. The mind likes short cuts — but they miss out a lot.
2. Don’t believe in the stereotype or do anything that might reinforce it. This is more tempting than you might imagine; everyone tends to respond to the image of themselves they see others respond to. When women are perceived as bitches, it can make them even tougher and more alone; when women are treated as geishas, it’s hard not to become more charming.
3. Cleave to the colleagues and friends who see the whole you. We all need people to remind us of the best that we can be.

What other stereotypes do you see that afflict women’s careers?

An extract of an article by Margaret Heffernan

As executives working at the nexus of business and technology, CIOs are uniquely qualified to help their organizations leverage available technology to meet challenges presented by the current economic crisis and to exploit new opportunities that arise. For CIOs, the imperative is to address issues from two perspectives—the outward view of employing IT to capitalize on business opportunities and support business change, and the inward view of their own IT operations.

Read full paper.

Have you ever wondered how to be a better listener? We often forget how important listening skills are in successful communication. Perhaps we should be NICE and listen more. The following is a small and an easy acronym for you.

• N – NEVER dismiss, judge or argue. Be NICE and listen to the message.
• I – INTEND to actively listen. INTERACT and acknowledge the other person’s feelings.
• C – CAPTURE and repeat what is being said. COMMUNICATE and show your understanding.
• E – ENGAGE in further discussion. ENSURE that you fully understand and work towards solution.

How do you measure up?