Socrates was said to have referred to himself as the ‘gadfly’ – and that all societies need one to ‘sting the steed of state into acknowledging its proper duties and obligations’. It didn’t out too well for him though – Athens didn’t take too kindly to this ‘fastening upon you, arousing and persuading and reproaching... Continue Reading →

Here’s a thought experiment: you get to create a dream team of problem solvers in your organization. What would the team look like? Who would you have on your team? Over the last few weeks, I have talked about various dimensions of problem solving: this one and the next few will focus on the importance... Continue Reading →

It was the 1950s and General Electric was the largest appliance manufacturer in the US. In one of their factories in Kentucky, the managers were struggling with what seemed to be an intractable problem – there were times of the year when the factory would be working 3 or even 4 shifts, and then there... Continue Reading →

18th century Europe was a particularly exciting time if you were in the seafaring business. There were multiple ventures, several with vast capital investment attempting some very bold goals (most of these ventures would be outright illegal or egregious by today’s standards or ethical standards of any age – colonial ambitions, slave trade et al.... Continue Reading →

Imagine this: you are going to the theater for a movie (in a post-covid world!) and you enter the parking lot. You have to make a choice as you drive towards the theater: do you pick the first open spot that you see (which means you have to walk longer and might miss the opening... Continue Reading →