Neveen Awad, the daughter of an engineer, learned early in life “how fun it was to make machines do something.” As the only computer science major in her graduating class at college and later a PhD, she eventually realized that she did not want to spend her days coding. Awad became a professor and now runs BCG’s Detroit office. She’s spent the past few years researching gender diversity in technology. She talks about why the first and second promotion for women are so critical, how paternity leave can be for a boon for women in leadership—and more.   This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

Why do CEOs struggle with the act of imagination when it comes naturally to 5-year-olds? And what happens when people and organizations seemingly lose their ability to imagine? Martin Reeves, chairman of the BCG Henderson Institute, argues that imagination is an untapped and essential resource for organizations. This is particularly true in an error when competitive advantages that once lasted a decade can disappear in as quickly as a year--and as companies see their growth potential decays as they grow and age. Reeves, coauthor of The Imagination Machine, explains how organizations can regain the art of imagination. Hint: it takes practice.  This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

Organizations often view inclusion, along with its cousins diversity and equity, as a goal. But what if they start viewing it as a practice, an active commitment, and a way of doing business? Kedra Newsom Reeves, a BCG partner and co-lead of BCG’s North America Center for Inclusion and Equity who works for financial and social sector clients alike, argues that organizations must deeply embed inclusivity into their business practices. Otherwise banks and other financial institutions will not meaningfully play their part in closing the racial wealth gap. And other organizations will also fall short of whatever aspirations they set. Inclusion must be treated as an innovation—as a break from the past—because “for hundreds of years, we were not making decisions to be inclusive.”   This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

Cell phones, social media, messaging software, and multitasking are robbing our attention, as our monkey minds jump from one notification to another. Mickey McManus, a BCG senior advisor and leadership coach, explains how these distractions strip our cognitive capacity and even our ability to make ethical decisions. Is this the price of “progress,” or is there something to be done? McManus offers tips for everyone from the board and C-suite to the front line to enable companies and employees to regain control of our cognition.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

Ashley Grice finds great joy, meaning, and sometimes peril in words. As the CEO of BCG BrightHouse, Grice helps organizations find their purpose. Words are her instruments of trade. They can help bring strategy to life and inspire imagination and wonder. But by choosing words that are impersonal, flat, and cold, CEOs and other leaders frequently miss the chance to connect with their people. Grice explains how leaders can use language more effectively and what to do when their words are misunderstood. She also reads two poems—her own.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

The So What from BCG is taking a short break over the holidays - if you’re celebrating, I hope you’re having a lovely time.We’ve been hard at work arranging a host of exciting guests and topics for our upcoming episodes from the 5th of January. We’ll be talking about the beauty and power of language; wealth equity; the emotional value of work; how to protect your brain from distractions, and much much more.Happy holidays - and we’ll see you next year.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

As the pandemic rumbles on, many countries have been suffering shortages and panic buying as global supply chains wobble. Much of that will likely ease over the coming months, but systemic challenges remain. In this episode, Dustin Burke, one of BCG’s leaders in manufacturing and supply chains, urges companies to use the experience of the last 18 months to build resilience and reliability into their operations without adding cost and redundancy. How do companies achieve better access to real-time data for greater visibility into potential shortages and risks? Could we see greater cooperation within—and even across—industries to protect supply chains of essential components? And looking to the long term, how can we expect automation and artificial intelligence to help ease labor shortages?This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

The pandemic has exposed fissures in the way we work, which is stuck in the industrial age. Deborah Lovich, who leads BCG’s people strategy topic, and Brian Elliott, executive leader and senior vice president of Future Forum, talk about why leaders want to return to the office and many workers don’t, why water coolers are not the source of inspiration, and how organizations can start to recalibrate their outdated approach to leadership, work, culture, and purpose.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

How can organizations become more experimental? Julia Dhar, the cofounder and leader of BeSmart, BCG’s behavioral economics and insights initiative, says identify a big problem, start small, and do not overly worry that academics may criticize your experiment. As a bonus, Dhar provides her three favorite nudges for everyday living.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

Lil Miquela, a 19-year-old TikTok influencer with more than 3 million followers, has promoted Calvin Klein, Prada, and other top fashion brands. She also happens to be an avatar, an online robot created by a startup with venture funding. Sarah Willersdorf, BCG’s global head of luxury, explores the somewhat wacky but very real intersection of fashion and the metaverse, explaining what the virtual world holds in store for consumers and brands.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy