Cold Call

In this podcast, they discuss the challenges of digital transformation in a large bureaucratic organization like the US Air Force. They explore the difference between legacy and digital native companies and the challenges of integrating systems in the Air Force. They also talk about the importance of educating the organization about AI adoption and share lessons learned in organizing innovation in the Air Force.

Entrepreneur Wendy Estrella discusses her unique journey as a Latinx entrepreneur, scaling both her law practice and property management company in Lawrence, Massachusetts. The podcast explores the challenges she faced, the impact of the Leeds program on personal and business growth, the importance of recognizing opportunities, overcoming language barriers, and the experience of being a Latinx lawyer. The chapter highlights the need for more representation in the legal field and the challenges faced by underrepresented minorities in entrepreneurship.

Tensions rise between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour as players defect and lawsuits are filed. The PGA Tour suspends participants of LIV Golf event. Eventually, both entities merge. The podcast explores antitrust, regulatory issues, and the PGA Tour's response to LIV Golf's entry.

This podcast discusses Proximie, a platform that uses mixed reality and digital tools to improve communication and mentorship in operating rooms. It explores the challenges of integrating medical technology, the potential of remote mentorship in surgeries, Proximie's strategy for partnering and digital transformation, and the future vision and challenges of digital transformation in healthcare.

The podcast discusses the competition and imitation among social networks like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook. It explores the challenges faced by TikTok, including privacy concerns and anti-Chinese sentiment. The chapter also delves into the strategies employed by these platforms to attract creators and followers, expressing concern about Instagram's ability to compete with TikTok.

Real estate entrepreneur Ryan Serhant discusses his time management techniques, reflecting on his career during the pandemic. Topics include prioritization, maximizing time, balancing work and family, starting a company while pursuing an MBA, and living with intention.

mPharma, headquartered in Ghana, is trying to create the largest pan-African health care company. Their mission is to provide primary care and a reliable and fairly priced supply of drugs in the nine African countries where they operate. Co-founder and CEO Greg Rockson needs to decide which component of strategy to prioritize in the next three years. His options include launching a telemedicine program, expanding his pharmacies across the continent, and creating a new payment program to cover the cost of common medications. Rockson cares deeply about health equity, but his venture capital-financed company also must be profitable. Which option should he focus on expanding? Harvard Business School professor Regina Herzlinger and case protagonist Greg Rockson discuss the role business can play in improving health care in the case, “mPharma: Scaling Access to Affordable Primary Care in Africa.”

In 2020, the Mars Petcare leadership team found themselves facing critically important inclusion and diversity issues. Unprecedented protests for racial justice in the U.S. and across the globe generated demand for substantive change, and Mars Petcare’s 100,000 employees across six continents were ready for visible signs of progress. How should Mars’ leadership build on their existing diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts and effectively capitalize on the new energy for change? Harvard Business School associate professor Katherine Coffman is joined by Erica Coletta, Mars Petcare’s chief people officer, and Ibtehal Fathy, global inclusion and diversity officer at Mars Incorporated, to discuss the case, “Inclusion and Diversity at Mars Petcare.”

Launched in 2016, Unilever’s Future of Work initiative aimed to accelerate the speed of change throughout the organization and prepare its workforce for a digitalized and highly automated era. But despite its success over the last three years, the program still faces significant challenges in its implementation. How should Unilever, one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies, best prepare and upscale its workforce for the future? How should Unilever adapt and accelerate the speed of change throughout the organization? Is it even possible to lead a systematic, agile workforce transformation across several geographies while accounting for local context? Harvard Business School professor and faculty co-chair of the Managing the Future of Work Project William Kerr and Patrick Hull, Unilever’s vice president of global learning and future of work, discuss how rapid advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and automation are changing the nature of work in the case, “Unilever’s Response to the Future of Work.”

In late October 2022, Elon Musk officially took Twitter private and became the company’s majority shareholder, finally ending a months-long acquisition saga. He appointed himself CEO and brought in his own team to clean house. Musk needed to take decisive steps to succeed against the major opposition to his leadership from both inside and outside the company. Twitter employees circulated an open letter protesting expected layoffs, advertising agencies advised their clients to pause spending on Twitter, and EU officials considered a broader Twitter ban. What short-term actions should Musk take to stabilize the situation, and how should he approach long-term strategy to turn around Twitter? Harvard Business School assistant professor Andy Wu and co-author Goran Calic, associate professor at McMaster University’s DeGroote School of Business, discuss Twitter as a microcosm for the future of media and information in their case, “Twitter Turnaround and Elon Musk.”