A brief guide to streamlining the search for keynote speakers
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Stress is common for most people – and for some, it’s more than tension and anxiety; it leads to dangerous health problems, from heart issues to panic attacks and nervous…
Virtual reality is very close to becoming a major element of society. With its ability to alter perceptions of the real world, what implications does the emerging technology have for the future of business and society? Minds Worth Meeting chats with VR pioneer and Stanford University Professor Jeremy Bailenson, who discusses the possibilities, opportunities and dangers of using this new medium.
VR is the new frontier of human experience. VR pioneer Jeremy Bailenson’s new book explains how it works, its practical applications, and its significance for humanity.
It is inevitable that artificial intelligence will play an increasingly important role in our lives. Rana el Kaliouby is ensuring that it adapts and responds to, rather than clashes with, our human emotions.
In his latest research, Clay Christensen uses his “Jobs to Be Done” framework tackle America’s chronic disease epidemic.
Trust expert Rachel Botsman shows how the financial sector has much to gain by better understanding the changing nature of trust in society.
Futurist Amy Webb analyzes Republican tax reforms, revealing how they jeopardize the long-term competitiveness of America’s economy and workforce.
Stern Strategy Group Senior Vice President Tara Baumgarten reveals how Alex Osterwalder made her a better strategic communicator in 2017.
Amy Webb and Hal Gregersen win big at Thinkers50!
Social psychologist Dr. Sherry Turkle has spent her academic career analyzing the effects of technology on human behavior and culture, and has drawn the conclusion that our humanity is jeopardized when digital devices interfere with real human interactions. When Mattel released its newest product “Aristotle” – equipped with a camera and microphone designed to help parents occupy and educate their children – Turkle’s research helped fuel a public outcry that ultimately killed the device before it went to market…
Innovation drives our economy, revolutionizes industries, and provides an avenue to radically rethink existing ways of conducting business. But how do companies and entrepreneurs make sure they’re on the winning side of the innovation battle? Strategy+Business magazine has released its list of the top new books on innovation in 2017, and we are pleased to announce that all the chosen books were authored or co-authored by our clients. This holiday season, give the gift of innovation with these winning titles…
What are we training students to do? In the last millennium, the structure of education has remained constant: students sit in rows listening to a lecturer as they follow along in a book. This factory model, says futurist, award winning author and digital transformation guru Robert Tercek, will be the demise of the workforce if we don’t reinvent the education system to meet the needs of the 21st century society…
In the November-December issue of Harvard Business Review, award-winning author and Harvard business professor, Michael E. Porter, and PTC Chief Executive, James E. Heppelmann, pen the business case for augmented reality – showing what it is, how every link in the chain, from manufacturing through sales, will reap the rewards of its application, and how converging the digital and physical worlds will enhance human capabilities, changing the business landscape forever…
The Trump administration and congressional Republicans are staking everything on what they say will be the greatest tax reform agenda in three decades. The president has pitched massive tax cuts, time and again, as a way to help boost jobs and wages for working Americans. Mihir Desai, Mizuho Financial Group Professor of Finance at Harvard Business School, co-authored a paper touted by the White House as supporting the notion that cutting the top corporate tax rate from 35% to 20% will raise household incomes by as much as $9,000 annually. There is one dissenting voice, however: Professor Desai himself…
Future generations will call today the beginning of a radical social, technological and economic revolution. Erik Brynjolfsson, renowned MIT professor and leading authority on how businesses can leverage emerging technologies, concludes that harnessing advances in artificial intelligence (AI) is the grand challenge for our society…
Robots are revolutionizing how humans go about their daily business. Amazon’s robotic “personal assistant,” known as “Alexa,” may be the first of the new personally relatable machines. Rachel Botsman introduced her three year-old daughter Grace to Alexa, and what ensued was an experiment in how the upcoming generation will relate to machines.
What sets a brand apart from its competitors? It’s not always the quality or cost of the product or service. A key differentiator is the engaging story behind the brand that connects to people on an emotional plane. Andrew Gordon, 20-year veteran of Pixar Animation and professional storyteller, has helped numerous companies distinguish themselves by…
At MIT’s Center for Extreme Bionics, Professor Hugh Herr and his team of researchers are working miracles. Through his own determination and scientific prowess, Herr overcame the loss of his lower legs after a tragic 1982 climbing accident. Today, he’s abolishing the debilitating physical and neurological handicaps afflicting humanity.
Toys”R”Us, Kodak, Nokia, and Blackberry were well-managed, exemplary leaders in their industries – until they weren’t. Now, as they teeter on the edge of the abyss, it’s apparent that they…
A monumental wave of distrust in key institutions – government, media, business, charities – is sweeping the world. While this social transformation should bode ill for humanity and business, Rachel Botsman, author of the highly anticipated book “Who Can You Trust? How Technology Brought Us Together and Why It Might Drive Us Apart”, says that’s not necessarily the case. Her groundbreaking book explains how we are at the start of the one of the biggest trust shifts in history – and reveals how business leaders should manage it…
It’s a common mistake. Instinct often compels marketers to position their company – or its products or services – as the hero of the “story.” But by focusing on themselves, they’re forgetting their most important champion…
Year after year, Congress fails to reach consensus on important issues, the electorate screams for change, and voters become more polarized along the lines of party and ideology. These struggles aren’t causes of America’s political malaise, says Michael E. Porter, co-chair of the U.S. Competitiveness Project at Harvard Business School; they’re symptoms of a much larger problem…
Innovation guru Hal Gregersen has interviewed more than 200 CEOs across industries and from around the world. His discovery? A parallel crucial to reimagining business…
As the world is transformed by technology and globalization, a consumer-centric marketing focus is more important than ever before…
From traditional drive-throughs to food trucks, the fast-food landscape has never been more crowded or competitive. Yet, despite its odds, Pal’s Sudden Service – a U.S. chain of local hamburger restaurants – is experiencing steady growth and continues to expand. It’s all about scale…
Most of us believe we know what purpose our products serve. We assume we understand our customers – what they want, and how and where they want it. The amount of customer data at our fingertips is unprecedented, and yet, we’re not getting any better at innovating…
There was a time when cautious, conservative companies were investors’ best bets. No longer. Those that get to the top and stay there are grounded in creativity, constantly ideating and innovating. Forbes’ annual “Most Innovative Companies” list offers numerous…
Say “maintenance of certification” in a room full of clinical specialists and watch them cringe. Required for physicians to remain board-certified in a specialty, MOC continues to be a hot-button issue across all specialty care fields…
Ideas – and the actions they trigger – have the power to change the world. It’s a mantra that propels organizations and individuals alike to innovate, push boundaries, and stimulate change and progress. It’s also a mission shared by all the thought leaders Stern Speakers represents…
Imagine a new technology that, within only a few years, revolutionized everyday life while rendering obsolete nearly all assumptions about leading companies and planning for future growth. At the beginning of the last century, that technology was electricity. Today, it’s artificial intelligence (AI)….
Uber is, in many ways, the quintessential startup story – one that will be studied, analyzed, discussed and debated for decades to come. But there is every chance the ride-hailing pioneer turned cautionary tale will be revered less for how it has harnessed technology to disrupt 21st century transportation than for the toxic culture that triggered its leadership crisis…
Price communicates. Your brand messages might say to your customers, “We value you,” but your pricing practices often refute your claim – whether you realize it or not…
In 2008, Anindya Ghose predicted the smartphone would ultimately be the most transformative consumer device – ever. Today, nearly a decade later, the foremost expert on mobile economics points to plenty of evidence proving his prediction is now reality…
Companies struggle with innovation, and Greg Bernarda believes he knows why. They’re still operating in the 20th century, a world where exploitation – executing and scaling products and services in known environments – is key currency for success. To compete in the 21st century, companies need to…
Envision this: free of the 9-to-5, more of us are “micro-entrepreneurs” who set our own hours and incomes, empowered to profit off our own assets and time without traditional employers. It’s not a far-fetched scenario; in fact, it’s the future of work…
While Americans anticipate the fate of U.S. healthcare policy, experts are still pondering one question. How can healthcare be transformed to become more affordable and accessible?
When refugees seek asylum, what is the role of the education sector? The number of people displaced by conflict is at the highest level ever recorded; one in every 113 people on the planet is a refugee, asylum seeker or internally displaced. And Alexander Betts, global authority on refugees and human migration, believes higher education institutions around the world are uniquely positioned to help turn crisis into chance…
Immersive technology is having its moment. After decades of development, virtual and augmented reality (VR and AR) are finally catching on – with businesses. Wal-Mart’s announcement last week that it plans to make…
Technology has forever altered the leadership and business strategy landscapes, and it continues to enable disruption across nearly every industry. Surviving – and succeeding – is one of the greatest challenges managers face, and it requires not only a different mindset, but also a …
Emotions influence every aspect of our life – how we learn, communicate, make decisions. Yet, they’re missing from our digital world. The devices and apps so ingrained in our day-to-day routines have had no way of knowing how we feel. Until now…
We’re well on our way to a future of self-driving cars – but uncertainty still paves the road ahead. When a driverless car crashes, who’s at fault? And who pays for the damages? Likely not the driver…
Today’s digital devices are designed to promote efficiency and responsiveness for professionals in every sector, including financial services. But MIT Professor Sherry Turkle says our “always-on,” hyper-connected state undermines relationships, creativity and productivity. And she has the research to prove it…
Want good economic news? Look to the American middle market.
The breakneck pace of development, particularly in technology, fuels growth and prosperity around the world. Yet, for all the positive value created by constant innovation, there’s a dismal downside: increased global inequality. But what if the world’s innovators turned their sights on…
Most of us spend our entire life looking for the right answers – from the first day of school until retirement, success is measured by answers. But the real value of those answers is based on the quality of the questions. Good questions inspire deep thinking and…
Every business must price what it sells. It’s inescapable and indispensable – and deeply misunderstood. But it doesn’t need to be that way, says marketing and monetization expert Marco Bertini.
Can you kick-start the economic growth of an entire region? It depends. How many billions do you have to throw around? Daniel Isenberg, entrepreneur and professor of entrepreneurship practice, has a better way. His method partners with stakeholders to help create growth innovation at a small fraction of the region’s businesses, which then drive growth in the entire area. More than theory, he’s worked scaling up success stories with major cities in the USA, Latin America and Northern Europe.
Karen Dillon will help you figure out your job. Not your profession – the “job” that your customers are trying to accomplish. “Jobs To Be Done” theory, as described in “Competing Against Luck: The Story of Innovation and Customer Choice” (HarperCollins, October 2016), co-authored by Clay Christensen and Dillon, explains this kind of job: it’s the progress your customer wants to achieve when they’re struggling. It can be small, like bottled iced coffee as a more convenient way to perk up in the morning, or huge, like the almost universal switch from film to digital photography.
At Stern Strategy Group®, we work with the foremost thinkers and doers who are helping companies, institutions and individuals understand the issues and capitalize on the opportunities created by change. It’s a mission we share with our clients, and it’s why we created Minds Worth Meeting (MWM). In a world absent of good conversation, our new podcast connects you to our roster of experts and thought leaders – forces and champions of change across a wide range of industries, disciplines and topics.
