17 | How the Best Leaders Respond to Rule Breaking

They first seek to understand why it happened. + Why you should take boring meetings, the cost of posting wide salary ranges, how effective managers encourage their employees to develop new skills and more



29 | In Focus

Understanding the Hidden Risks of AI Tools



30 | AI Doesn't Reduce Work--It Intensifies It

Aruna Ranganathan and Xingqi Maggie Ye



33 | When Using AI Leads to "Brain Fry"

Julie Bedard et al



37 | LLMs Are Manipulating Users with Rhetorical Tricks

Thomas Stackpole



40 | Research: Using AI Can Stifle Innovation, But It Doesn't Have To

Chengwei Liu et al



46 | The False Alignment Trap

Leaders often behave as if they agree on why, what, and how to change---when they actually don't. That's why most transformation efforts fail

Julie Dhar, Kristy R. Ellmer and Philip Jameson



58 | What Companies Get Wrong About Decision Rights

Four common mistakes and how to avoid them.

Lindy Greer, Jennifer Jordan and Maxim Sytch



68 | The Power of Strategic Centering

Choosing a clear organizing principle can help companies navigate uncertainty and act faster

Rita McGrath



80 | Making the Leap from Corporate Leader to PE-Backed CEO

Not everybody can manage the transition. Here's what it really takes to succeed

Samantha Hellauer et al



88 | Why The Best Immersive Experiences Succeed

They invite deep engagement by answering key questions people ask themselves

Joseph C. Nunes and Wendy Helmann



100 | Six Ways Leader Harness Stress

Executives perform best when they understand their default reactions--and broaden their range of responses

Jon Miller and Drew Keller



112 | How Agentic AI Supercharges Startups and Threatens Incumbents

A new operating model shrinks the time and capital needed to build companies, redefining how ventures launch and scale

Vivian S. Lee, Linda Mantia and Jon McNeill



122 | Bring Back Managing for Value

As capital costs rise, companies need a disciplined way to allocate resources without abandoning commitments to employees, customers and the environment. Here's how to find that balance

Michael Mankins and Matthew Crupi



131 | How Elite Sports Coaches Make High-Pressure Decisions

What they do before, during and after critical choices

Alan McCall et al



136 | The Former CEO of Procafecol on Building a Global Growth Strategy for Juan Valdez Coffee

By targeting a narrow set of international markets and seeking out values-aligned local partners, the company has put itself on a sustainable path to scale

Camila Escobar



141 | A Key Supplier Failed a Labor Audit. Now What?

A furnishings company must decide how to address violations at a partner's factory

Sandeep Puri

46__ LEADING TEAMS

How to Build a Superteam That Keeps Getting Better

Seven research-backed practices.

Ron Friedman



56__ NEGOTIATION STRATEGIES

Negotiating When There is No Plan B

You can find leverage even when the other side has all the power.

Jonathan Hughes and Saptak Ray



66__ MANAGING PEOPLE

Employees Are Relying on AI for Personal Support. That's Risky

Research shows how AI can weaken humans connection at work. Leaders should step in to prevent this.

Constance Noonan Hadley and Sarah L. Wright



76__ BOARDS

Managing Difficult Directors

Practical advice for executives and fellow board members.

Marianna Zangrillo, Thomas Keil, and Stevo Pavicevic



86__ BUSINESS & SOCIETY

The Rise of The Urban Knowledge Campus

To reinvigorate office life, large companies are relocating to mixed-use neighborhoods that offer easy access to transit, housing, and amenities.

Richard Florida et al.



96__ LEADERSHIP

Should You Appoint an Interim CEO

It's riskier than you think. Here's when it makes sense and who to choose.

Nicolas T. Deuschel, Robert Langan, and Christoph Mat



106_ LEADERSHIP

What Companies Can Learn from Their Biggest Fans

Your most devoted employees and customers have a lot to teach you about loyalty and performance.

Marcus Buckingham



116_ TECHNOLOGY & ANALYTICS

How Gen AI Robots Are Reshaping Services

They converse, physically interact, and learn in real time.

Jochen Wirtz



19__ IN THEORY

Data Privacy is a Growth Strategy

But only if customers know about it. PLUS How upskilling staff lets managers focus on strategy, LLM's cultural biases, why you should simplify your arguments, and more.



30__

Why Keeping Up with Change Feels Harder Than Ever

Kayla Velnoskey, Ingrid Laman, and Carolina Valencia



33__

How to Build Stakeholder Trust Amid Unpredictability

Sandra J. Sucher and David M. Bersoff



37__

Being Adaptable Isn't Enough. You Have to Demonstrate It

Marlo Lyons



40__

How to Lead When Things Feel Increasingly Out of Control

Eric Solomon and Anup Srivastava



127_ MANAGING YOURSELF

Tapping into Your Team's Circadian Rhytms

You and your employees all have different internal clocks. Enhance performance by planning around them.

Stefan Volk



132_ HOW WE DID IT

The CEO of UnitedHealthCare on Fixing What Frustates Customer Most

The insurer has created a group tasked with understanding individual client problems to develop and scale broader solutions.

Tim Noel



137_ CASE STUDY

Should a Funeral Company Shift Its Business Model?
A family business considers expanding from cemeteries into cremation.

Andres Cuneo, Marco Bertini, and Jill Avery



144_ LIFE'S WORK

Jet Li

March-April 2026, Volume 104, Issue 2



Why Great Innovations Fail to Scale

Breakthrough ideas need a special kind of leader to help them flourish.



54__ Technology & Analytics

Why Gen AI Feels So Threatening to Workers

And what leaders can do to ease the anxiety.

Erik Hermann, Stefano Puntoni, and Carey K. Morewedge



64__ Strategy

Will Your Investors Support Your Strategic Pivot?

Here's how to figure that out.

Mark DesJardine and Wei Shi



74__ Innovation

Why Great Innovations Fail to Scale

Breakthrough solutions aren't enough. New ideas can't flourish without "bridgers" - leaders who excel at collaborating across boundaries.

Linda A. Hill, Emily Tedards, and Jason Wild



86__ Technology & Analytics

Preparing Your Brand for Agentic AI

LLMs and agents are reshaping how consumers research and buy. Most companies aren't ready.

Oguz A. Acar and David A. Schweidel



96__ IT Management

Why the Digital Product Model Beats Project-Based Approaches

Temporary teams can build new systems, but permanent ones can both develop them and manage them after launch.

Ryan Nelson and Thomas H. Davenport



106__ Managing People

The Solution to Service-Worker Churn

Many companies' scheduling practices are broken. New research shows that analytics can help.

Santiago Gallino and Borja Apaolaza



114__ Leadership

The Skills Board Chairs Need Now

They must juggle competing stakeholder priorities. adapt as new technologies upend strategies, and help a diverse group of directors find common ground.

Pedro Fontes Falcao and Randall S. Peterson

_46_ Change Management

Gett Off the Transformation Treadmill

Too much change can traumatize your organization. The remedy is to minimize the need.

Darrell Rigby and Zach First



_56_ Leadership

Leading After the Founder

When the person who built the company steps back, emotions run high - and many organizations stumble. Here's how to manage the transition.

Samantha Hellauer et al.



_66_ Technology & Analytics

A Systematic Approach to Experimenting with Gen AI

Companies need more testing at the organizational level.

Johannes Berndt et al.



_75_ Negotiation Strategies

Why Big Companies Struggle to Negotiate Great Deals

The structural traps that undermine enterprise negotiations - and how to escape them.

Danny Ertel

Stop Holding Yourself Back: How to overcome self-limiting beliefs.
- Become an Octopus organization.
- Is this a moment for strategic hibernation?
- The surprising success of hand-on leaders.
- What every company can learn from private equity.
- Stop running so many AI pilots.
- How to monetize your data.
- A smarter way to disagree.
- The gen AI playbook for organizations.