Filling The Gaps

Value Based Management

Quite an useful site. You can also have a look at the Free Management Library.

Technology and the Global Economy

Quite an interesting conversation on the connection between technology and economic development. Talking a lot about innovation issues (why innovation is so important today, what does innovation ecology mean, what ODM stands for, Factor 4…or 10?, etc) and the “incredible excitement of change”.

I like the reflections on the world we are living in as an “age of discontinuity” instead of an age of continuity, as it was till now. (And as a result of that- is the set of assumptions & knowledge managers have is relevant in today`s world?) plus much more. It`s definetely worth listening to.

I was looking for some information concerning company loyalty (because of this) , which could serve me as a basis for brainstorming and here you are three of the most interesting articles I found. Starting with a paper edited by HBS.

[...] After all, the lifetime contract expired long ago, and your people—especially your best people—are more likely to display loyalty to their careers than to you, their employer. [...]

[...] But even when you can’t retain talent, it doesn’t mean departing employees weren’t loyal. Indeed, another mistaken assumption is that loyalty has to mean “forever.” [...]

[...] “I’d rather have a star performer for three years than a dud for life.” [...]

[...] “Managers need to help their people identify links between their own professional goals and the company’s goals. [...]

[...] A loyal workforce saves money in the form of lower recruiting costs, fewer stranded clients, and less downtime. It also encourages knowledge acquisition and sharing. “The longer employees stay with a company,” explains Harvard Business School professor Linda Hill, “the more opportunity they have to develop the tacit knowledge needed to fulfill their responsibilities and the more they exchange it with others.”[...]

Rethinking Company Loyalty

[...]“While a certain amount of turnover is to be expected, excessive voluntary turnover hurts the bottom line. The total cost of replacing an employee can run five times their annual compensation. High turnover also adversely affects customer loyalty. Companies around the world are being challenged to keep their best employees while attracting new talent, and this is driving considerable interest in programmes to strengthen the employee bond.”[...]

Is employee loyalty a thing of the past?

Plus How long do employees usually stay with one company? which is not really a paper, but it contains some interesting points that could be further develop.

I did not apply for this scholarship as I couldn`t organize my thoughts in the way I wanted, but I`ll soon post my essay here. (Un)fortunately only in Bulgarian. And btw summer is gone, so I come back