Entitled Opinons is a gem of a podcast. It began almost a decade ago, offering intelligent and informed discussion about a variety of subjects: art, literature, music, philosophy and science. It’s hosted by Robert Harrison, a professor at Stanford University, my alma mater. In April, Harrison spoke with a philosopher from Boston College, Richard Kearney,…Read More
B.F. Skinner, the father of behaviorism, titled his seminal work, Beyond Freedom and Dignity. The title gave away his central thesis, that we are utterly determined to behave in certain ways by our previous “conditioning.” We have no free will, and thus no dignity. We are essentially automatons, and if we want to improve our…Read More
When Boeing merged with McDonnell-Douglas in 1997, there ensued a cultural power struggle between Boeing engineers and McDonnell-Douglas bean counters. If I say Wall Street won this battle, will that tell you who came out on top? In the end, Boeing went against the grain of its deepest cultural values by outsourcing nearly two-thirds of…Read More
The Only Way to Win
In employee benefits
Few business stories have Hollywood endings like the one Market Basket enjoyed recently when it defeated a hostile takeover. That may not be quite the right term for what almost happened. It was an internal power struggle that turned into an astonishing tale of employee and customer loyalty. Five family shareholders forced the CEO to…Read More
On a recent visit to Letchworth State Park in Western New York (often called The Grand Canyon of the East), we happened upon the personal rules of conduct followed by its founder, William Pryor Letchworth, a philanthropist who bequeathed the park for public use at his death. I was inspired and moved by the kindness…Read More
