HBR On Leadership The Best Leaders Ask the Right Questions
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May 14, 2025 
Arnaud Chevallier, a strategy professor at IMD Business School and co-author of "The Art of Asking Smarter Questions," shares his insights on how leaders can enhance their questioning skills. He discusses five crucial types of questions—investigative, speculative, productive, interpretive, and subjective—that can dramatically improve decision-making. Real-life examples illustrate how the right question at the right moment can unlock value. Chevallier emphasizes the importance of active listening and emotional understanding in leadership for fostering team dynamics and strategic success.
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Managers' Question Mix Creates Blind Spots
- Managers tend to develop and rely on a personal mix of questions based on experience and role demands.
- This mix may create blind spots if not adapted when promoted or facing new problems.
Five Types of Strategic Questions
- Five types of strategic questions help tackle complex decisions: investigative, speculative, productive, interpretive, and subjective.
- Investigative digs deep; speculative widens possibilities; productive focuses on action pace.
Assess and Expand Your Question Style
- Assess your personal question style to understand your questioning strengths and weaknesses.
- Use this awareness to deliberately expand your question repertoire depending on the decision context.