Off The Shelf

What's missing from gender equality efforts? Men. Research shows that when men are deliberately engaged in gender-inclusion programs, 96 percent of women in those organizations perceive real progress in gender equality, compared with only 30 percent of women in organizations without strong male engagement. Join co-authors David G. Smith and W. Brad Johnson to discuss their important, new book which explores the critical role men can play in promoting gender equality at work.

The world is drastically changing. By 2030, a new reality will take hold, and before you know it, there will be more grandparents than grandchildren, the global economy will be driven by the non-Western consumers, there will be more global wealth owned by women than men, and there will be more robots than workers. So how can businesses prepare for what comes next? In his new book, Wharton Professor Mauro Guillen encourages us to consider the dynamic inter-play between a range of forces that will converge on a single tipping point -- 2030, and offers a guide to help revolutionize the way we think about cataclysmic change and its consequences.

Leaders have experimented with open innovation programs, corporate accelerators, venture capital arms, skunkworks, and innovation contests. Yet, most would admit they've failed to create truly innovative cultures. There's a better way. And it all starts with the power of habit. Join innovation expert and co-author of The Little Black Book of Innovation to discuss his latest book, Eat, Sleep, Innovate: How to Make Creativity an Everyday Habit Inside Your Organization, which offers a new guide for using the power of habit to build a culture of innovation. Hear groundbreaking research in behavioral science to provide a first-of-its-kind playbook for empowering individuals and teams to be their most curious and creative—every single day.

Join Chris Gentle talking to Mark Goyder, founder of Tomorrow’s Company, about his new book Entrusted.  In these volatile and uncertain times, the book captures how we can build better stewardship in companies.  The discussion offers some fascinating and practical insights on shifting away from extractive capitalism towards a new era of responsible wealth creation from around the globe.

Pet-owners now make up the fastest growing demographic of the US population, with the number of domesticated animals increasing at about five times the speed of the human population. This means that there is an entire economy that has been created just to serve this population.

Join Mark Cushing, founder and CEO of the Animal Policy Group, as he talks with our Marketing Institute Leader, JP Kuehlwein, about his new book and how pets – and their owners – are transforming the American culture, economy and nation.

https://conference-board.org/podcasts

Ken Rusk, ‘Million Dollar Ditch Digger’ and author of "Blue Collar Cash”, joins Marketing Institute Leader, JP Kuehlwein, to discuss his latest book, which demonstrates that blue-collar trades can be a source of pride and that you can find your version of happiness by pursuing a hands-on craft. The economy is in desperate need of skilled tradespeople and those who are willing to work hard can make good money. Learn how to achieve your dreams, regardless of your educational background or past.

In this episode of Off The Shelf, Harvard Business Professor, Joseph L. Badaracco, discusses his latest book which argues that we don’t need long periods of solitude or tranquility to reflect well in ways that are useful, meaningful, and sometimes profound. Instead, Joseph introduces what he calls “mosaic” reflection, an approach that better fits into our active lives and relies on four basic tactics for good, everyday reflection: 1) Aim for good enough 2) Downshift occasionally 3) Ponder the tough issues 4) Pause and measure up.

Carly Fiorina, Founder and Chairwoman of Carly Fiorina Enterprises & the Unlocking Potential Foundation, and Former CEO of Hewlett Packard, started as a secretary and later became the first female CEO of a Fortune 500 company. In her latest book, Carly draws on her own remarkable journey, and empirical evidence accumulated over four decades in the workplace, to help her readers unleash their potential so they can build a more satisfying career and live out their dreams. Join The Conference Board Executive Vice President of Human Capital, Dr. Rebecca Ray, as she speaks with Carly about her latest book which offers her unique perspective on the following, critical career questions: • How to choose a path over a plan, • How to use problems to propel yourself and your organization forward, • How to overcome fear and procrastination, • How to make smart decisions, and • How to reclaim your power and use it for good. No matter your current position, this book provides helpful, proven wisdom to help guide your way to a more satisfying, successful career.

Join Carl Benedikt Frey, Director of Future of Work at the Oxford Martin School at Oxford University, as he discusses his new book, The Technology Trap. Selected a Financial Times Best Books of the Year in 2019, this book offers a sweeping look at the history of technological progress and how it has radically shifted the distribution of economic and political power among society’s members. During this program, Carl demonstrates how, in the midst of another technological revolution, the lessons of the past can help us to more effectively face the present.

As a result of measures taken nearly everywhere to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world is facing a major economic contraction. According to Conference Board estimates, global GDP growth will be -4.8 percent in 2020. To counter the shock, governments are laying down large-scale fiscal programs which will substantially increase public debt. At the same time, central banks are restarting QE programs and, where possible, lowering interest rate. At this stage of the COVID-19 crisis it looks like high debt levels, low interest rates and deflation are here to stay. Is the world economy heading towards a “Japanization” of their economies?

Join The Conference Board Marketing Institute Leader, JP Kuehlwein, as he talks with Dr. James Richardson, Founder of Premium Growth Solutions, about his new book, Ramping Your Brand: How to Ride the Killer CPG Growth Curve. Discover the steps used by industry founders to do the intense work that fast growth demands in order to scale their brands exponentially! This book offers a 4-part approach to thinking smarter about growth as a consumer packaged goods (CPG) entrepreneur: Designing to command a premium; Managing a small experiment; Fine tuning the conversion playbook; and accelerating to scale.

https://amzn.to/3ddYDI3

Join Bart van Ark, Executive Vice President & Chief Economist at The Conference Board, as he sits down with Nobel Prize winner Sir Angus Deaton, Senior Scholar and the Dwight D. Eisenhower Professor of Economics and International Affairs Emeritus at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University, as he discusses his latest book which offers a groundbreaking account of how the flaws in capitalism are fatal for America's working class. Deaths of Despair and the Future of Capitalism paints a troubling portrait of the American dream in decline. This book charts a way forward, providing solutions that can rein in capitalism’s excesses and make it work for everyone.

Strong behavioral competencies are essential for all managers today, especially during the COVID-19 global pandemic where employees are looking to leaders for guidance and support. Join Deb Cohen as she discusses her latest book which provides managers at any level with a pragmatic, easy-to-follow roadmap to help develop management skills.

With expert guidance on how to approach personal development in day-to-day activities along with practical worksheets, figures, and tables, this book is an essential resource for managers at all levels, as well as anyone interested in a managerial role. The book focuses on five key approaches as mechanisms for learning: the Art of Observation, Networking, Role Playing, Questioning, and Journaling. See www.developingmanagementproficiency.com for additional articles and exercises, as well as information on earning recertification credits for certified HR professionals.

Today's established companies must find new ways to reignite their entrepreneurial DNA and jumpstart revenues – or risk losing their way.

Hear from Jim Stengel, Former Global Marketing Officer at Procter & Gamble, as he sits down with our Marketing Institute Leader and Co-Founder & Principal of Ueber-Brands, to discuss his new book which describes the importance of corporations establishing partnerships with the startup world in order to learn how to better innovate.

In this podcast, we interview Alison Maitland, one of the authors of a new book on inclusion that sets out an expansive vision for inclusion which can help build more human, purposeful and sustainable businesses. Even more, a holistic and systematic approach to inclusion has the potential to harness our “collective superpower” - a timely and powerful message amidst the COVID-19 crisis.

INdivisible is available in ebook and paperback formats on Amazon and Barnes & Noble or at:

https://indivisible-book.com

Are you solving the right problems? Have you or your colleagues ever worked hard on something, only to find out you were focusing on the wrong problem entirely? Most people have. In a survey, 85 percent of companies said they often struggle to solve the right problems resulting in teams spending their energy on low-impact work.

Join author, Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg, as he discusses his latest book that offers leaders a simple, three-step method - Frame, Reframe, Move Forward - that anyone can use to start solving the right problems in order to achieve greater business success.

What if we could decode the elements of management and strategy-execution? Join Jack Duggal as he discusses his ground-breaking new book which provides innovative insights for organizational project management and PMO. Discover new perspectives on age-old management challenges, illuminating better ways to organize and manage in an increasingly turbulent, DANCE-world (Dynamic. Ambiguous. Non-Linear. Complex. Emergent).

Anne Stevens, Council Director at the Conference Board talks with Dr. Max Mckeown on his newest book. Both enlightening and entertaining, Dr Max Mckeown delivers concise advice on how to move from original insights to new ideas, and from new ideas to valuable real-world innovation. You’ll learn how to increase creativity, understand the psychology of thinking differently, encourage collaboration, co-create with customers, overcome indifference, create an idea-hungry culture, rid yourself of “idea zombies” and get to innovation paradise.

https://www.amazon.com/Innovators-Book-Rebels-Mavericks-Concise/dp/1912555433

What are the most important “marketing laws” that brand owners need to know about and apply? Do loyalty programs work? Should STP” (segmentation, targeting, positioning) remain the holy grail of marketing – and why not?  Join our Marketing Institute Leader, JP Kuehlwein, as he sits down with Dr. Byron Sharp, Professor of Marketing Science, and the Director of the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute, at the University of South Australia, to discuss his new book, How Brands Grow: What Marketers Don’t Know, which offers his unique perspective on these questions and many more.

Join The Conference Board’s Executive Vice President and Chief Economist Bart van Ark as he interviews George Friedman, Founder and Chairman of Geopolitical Futures, about his new book, The Storm Before The Calm. In his riveting new book, Friedman turns to the future of the United States. Examining the clear cycles through which the United States has developed, upheaved, matured, and solidified, Friedman breaks down the coming years and decades in thrilling detail.