The Best of This Week
The week’s must-reads for managing in the digital age, curated by the MIT SMR editors.
Topics
Weekly Recap
Managing the Unintended Consequences of Tech in Collaboration
Collaborative technologies enabled virtual work and kept teams connected when physical offices had to close because of the pandemic, but a close look at a Fortune 500 company’s virtual interactions reveals troubling insights about the transformative impact of new technology on organizational behavior. By following this article’s practical steps, managers can mitigate potential risks of isolation, exclusion, surveillance, and self-censorship.
Toward Dignity in the Use of Employee Data
Organizations stand to benefit greatly from employee data insights, given how they can inform improvements to work practices and the customer experience. But before these big wins can be enjoyed, employee data management must be carried out responsibly. Putting dignity at the center of acceptable data use improves management and governance of employee data and builds trust.
Get Updates on Transformative Leadership
Evidence-based resources that can help you lead your team more effectively, delivered to your inbox monthly.
Please enter a valid email address
Thank you for signing up
Unleashing Social Intrapreneurship From Within
Located at the intersection of social entrepreneurship and business intrapreneurship, social intrapreneurship offers an opportunity for companies to implement corporate social responsibility holistically, by involving employees and enabling them to contribute in creative ways.
Overtime as a Fix May Backfire, Big Time
Companies struggling to fill open positions are relying on current employees to log more hours, which can be a pricy proposition. But stress, burnout, and demands for extra time are contributing to a broad wave of resignations that, in turn, place even more pressure on the employees who remain.
What Else We’re Reading This Week
- MIT professor Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web. Thirty years later, he’s determined to slay the misinformation-ridden beast it has become (Source: Boston magazine)
- Offices’ biggest advantage isn’t hard work but the “soft work” that connects colleagues (Source: The Atlantic)
- Gig workers worldwide are connecting across borders, pressuring companies and governments to recognize that gig work is work — and should be paid as such (Source: Rest of World)
Quote of the Week:
“Strategy is not just where you are going. It is also how you are going to get there. Often, people think that if they tell you where they are going, then they have a strategy — no, they have a statement, not a strategy.”
— Camille Fournier, managing director and head of platform engineering at Two Sigma, in the latest interview in MIT Sloan Management Review’s Leading With Impact series, “Investing in Strategic Leadership”