Whitney Johnson

In Coach Me! Your Personal Board of Directors: Leadership Advice from the World’s Greatest Coaches, a team of world-renowned executive coaches and leadership experts delivers a revolutionary collection of contributions from 52 of the globe’s leading management thinkers. Each curated piece explores a critical issue in leadership, covering topics like self-awareness, communication, interpersonal relationships, emotional intelligence, delegation, coaching, change management, transition management,… Show more

In Coach Me! Your Personal Board of Directors: Leadership Advice from the World’s Greatest Coaches, a team of world-renowned executive coaches and leadership experts delivers a revolutionary collection of contributions from 52 of the globe’s leading management thinkers. Each curated piece explores a critical issue in leadership, covering topics like self-awareness, communication, interpersonal relationships, emotional intelligence, delegation, coaching, change management, transition management, execution, and career development. Show less

The business world as we knew it will never be the same again. And in this time of crisis, leaders are looking for the best guidance and direction they can find.

Leadership in a Time of Crisis offers a wide range of thought on the present COVID-19 pandemic from some of the world’s most effective consultants in all areas of employee and customer growth and engagement—considering the ramifications on people, on the healthcare system, on local, national and global economies, and on our… Show more

The business world as we knew it will never be the same again. And in this time of crisis, leaders are looking for the best guidance and direction they can find.

Leadership in a Time of Crisis offers a wide range of thought on the present COVID-19 pandemic from some of the world’s most effective consultants in all areas of employee and customer growth and engagement—considering the ramifications on people, on the healthcare system, on local, national and global economies, and on our businesses.

In early March 2020, as the present crisis was unfolding, member consultants of the not for profit organization Marshall Goldsmith 100 Coaches began meeting daily to discuss the developments and repercussions of current events. They heard from global leaders from around the world. This book reflects the one insight from each of the thirty-seven contributors that could most help leaders during this time of unprecedented crisis.

Contributors include:

Asheesh Advani
Jenny Blake
Peter Bregman
David Burkus
James M. Citrin
Erica Dhawan
Connie Dieken
Chester Elton
Robert Glazer
Sally Helgesen
Whitney Johnson
Tom Kolditz
Harry Kraemer
Martin Lindstrom
Rita McGrath
Sharon Melnick
Dave Meltzer
Richie Norton
Laura Gassner Otting
Liz Wiseman Show less

How do you calibrate your organization to not drown in disruption but rather ride the wave?

The short and simple answer is, you calibrate your people to be change agents---because organizations can't disrupt unless people do.

High-growth organizations need high-growth individuals. Startups, growth-stage companies, and private equity-backed companies all have one thing in common: They need high-growth individuals to execute high-growth plans. As a leader trying to achieve ambitious organizational goals, you need people who can do more than just keep up; you need people who can set the pace. You need high-growth individuals. "Disrupt Yourself" helps high-growth individuals--and those trying to attain this… Show more

High-growth organizations need high-growth individuals. Startups, growth-stage companies, and private equity-backed companies all have one thing in common: They need high-growth individuals to execute high-growth plans. As a leader trying to achieve ambitious organizational goals, you need people who can do more than just keep up; you need people who can set the pace. You need high-growth individuals. "Disrupt Yourself" helps high-growth individuals--and those trying to attain this status--learn the tools and frameworks necessary to make changes that matter. This book helps you understand how these frameworks of disruptive innovation can apply to your particular path, whether you are: A self-starter ready to make a disruptive pivot in your business; A high-potential individual charting your career trajectory; A manager looking to instill innovative thinking within your team; A leader facing industry changes that make for an uncertain future. Whitney Johnson used the theory of disruptive innovation to invest in publicly traded stocks and early-stage private companies, and now she applies the framework to the personal and professional growth of individuals. We are living in an era of accelerating disruption, and no one is immune. Johnson makes the compelling case that managing the S-curve waves of learning and mastery is a requisite skill for the future. If you want to be successful in unexpected ways and achieve your wildest goals, follow your own disruptive path. Dare to innovate. Do something astonishing. Disrupt yourself. Show less

A unique collection featuring some of the world's greatest coaches.

Contributors include:

Asheesh Advani
Ayse Birsel
Peter Bregman
David Burkus
Bill Carrier
Julie Carrier
James Citrin
Dorie Clark
Alisa Cohn
David Gallimore
Hortense Le Gentil
Edy Greenblatt
Hal Gregersen
Sally Helgesen
Whitney Johnson
Atchara Juichareern
Bruce Kasanoff
Mo Kasti
Tom Kolditz
Praveen K. Kopalle
Jeffrey Kuhn
Martin Lindstrom
Soon… Show more

A unique collection featuring some of the world's greatest coaches.

Contributors include:

Asheesh Advani
Ayse Birsel
Peter Bregman
David Burkus
Bill Carrier
Julie Carrier
James Citrin
Dorie Clark
Alisa Cohn
David Gallimore
Hortense Le Gentil
Edy Greenblatt
Hal Gregersen
Sally Helgesen
Whitney Johnson
Atchara Juichareern
Bruce Kasanoff
Mo Kasti
Tom Kolditz
Praveen K. Kopalle
Jeffrey Kuhn
Martin Lindstrom
Soon Lo
Rita McGrath
Reeta Nathwani
David Nour
JEnnifer Paylor
David B . Peterson
Deepa Prahalad
Price Pritchett
Srikumar RAo
Antonio Nieto Rodriguez
Diane Ryan
Himanshu Saxena
Michael Bungay Stanier
Molly Tschang
Mark C. Thompson
Liz Wiseman
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Make the most of your distributed workforce.

In her April 2018 convocation speech, Whitney Johnson shared how one simple question––"Do I dare disturb the universe?" can guide us through our life journeys and lead us to discover greater growth and joy than we could ever imagine.

Lead each person on your team up the learning curve.

What's the secret to having an engaged and productive team? It's having a plan for developing all employees--no matter where they are on their personal learning curves.

Better morale and higher performance happen through learning, argues Whitney Johnson. In over twenty years of coaching, investing, and consulting, Johnson has seen that employees need continuous learning and fresh challenges to stay motivated.

The best… Show more

Lead each person on your team up the learning curve.

What's the secret to having an engaged and productive team? It's having a plan for developing all employees--no matter where they are on their personal learning curves.

Better morale and higher performance happen through learning, argues Whitney Johnson. In over twenty years of coaching, investing, and consulting, Johnson has seen that employees need continuous learning and fresh challenges to stay motivated.

The best bosses know this, and they know how to make it happen by thoughtfully designing people’s jobs around the skills they have today as well as the skills they'll need to be even more valuable tomorrow. That's how entire organizations stay competitive in an unpredictable, rapidly changing business environment.

In this book, Johnson explains how to become one of those bosses and how to build your A-team by:

Identifying what your employees already know and what they need to learn
Designing their jobs to maximize engagement and learning
Applying a seven-step process for leading each person up their learning curve

We all want opportunities to learn, experiment, and grow in our jobs. When our bosses work with us to help us leap to new challenges, the result is a team that knows how to thrive, no matter what the future holds. Show less

When your industry becomes volatile, diagnose your own exposure, then act.

How to lean in at work. Women regularly face unfair challenges in the workplace--from being passed over for promotion to being ignored in conversation. Unconscious bias and negative assumptions are working against them. As a woman, how can you break through these barriers and get what you want from your career? The "HBR Guide for Women at Work" will help you identify and overcome the factors that are holding you back. It provides practical tips and advice so you can face gender stereotypes… Show more

How to lean in at work. Women regularly face unfair challenges in the workplace--from being passed over for promotion to being ignored in conversation. Unconscious bias and negative assumptions are working against them. As a woman, how can you break through these barriers and get what you want from your career? The "HBR Guide for Women at Work" will help you identify and overcome the factors that are holding you back. It provides practical tips and advice so you can face gender stereotypes head-on, make yourself visible when opportunities arise, and demonstrate your leadership skills. You'll learn to: Speak up in meetings in a way that ensures your ideas will be heard; Wield influence by building the right relationships; Advocate for yourself--and for what you want; Align yourself with mentors and sponsors to support your growth; Show passion without being perceived as "too emotional"; Create your unique vision as a leader.

Contributors include: Deborah Tannen, Kathryn Heath, Jill Flynn and Mary Davis Holt, Margarita Mayo, Dorie Clark, Sylvia Ann, Hewlett, John Gerzema, Herminia Ibarra, Otilia Obodaru, Hannah Riley Boles, Rebecca Shambaugh, Deborah Kolb, Debra A. Noumair, Paola Cecchi-Demeglio and Kim Eleman, Amy Gallo, Joanna Grossman, Deborah L. Rhode and Lauren Stiller Rikleen, Avivah Wittenberg-Cox, Anne Marie Valerio, Katina Sawyer, Kristen Jones, and Eden King Show less

Work is Love Made Visible offers the insights of some of the world’s greatest thought leaders as they tackle one of life’s most difficult treasure hunts: finding purpose. The word “purpose” is big. Very big. And heavy. It carries the weight of a lifetime of work and struggle; the weight of legacy, and the mass of days spent not doing something else. It’s something we all grapple with at some point—some of us find our purpose, others spend a lifetime searching. A lucky few grow to realize… Show more

Work is Love Made Visible offers the insights of some of the world’s greatest thought leaders as they tackle one of life’s most difficult treasure hunts: finding purpose. The word “purpose” is big. Very big. And heavy. It carries the weight of a lifetime of work and struggle; the weight of legacy, and the mass of days spent not doing something else. It’s something we all grapple with at some point—some of us find our purpose, others spend a lifetime searching. A lucky few grow to realize they’ve been working their purpose all along. Most of us aren’t quite that lucky; often, fulfilling your purpose requires some kind of change—career, lifestyle, habits, family—and what then? Are we selfish for the upheaval, or are we fulfilling destiny? Once we know our purpose, how do we pursue it?

This book asked those very questions of people who have followed their purpose and succeeded on a global scale. Their un-distilled answers are here, lending you the wisdom of their experiences, their examples, inspiration, and motivations as they:

Tackle the universal struggle with individual purpose and meaning
Illustrate how personal thought patterns contribute to real-world action
Move challenges into the opportunities of their lives
Reveal how they arrived at their life’s purpose, and what they sacrificed to get there
We all want a meaningful life. We want to work together for a brighter future, we want to celebrate our differences and commit to good. We want to inspire others, nurture their talents, and help them grow. We want to look back one day on a life well-lived, and leave something behind that matters to the world. Work is Love Made Visible shows you how some of us have succeeded, and offers you insight and guidance so that you can do the same. Show less

Editor: Richard Wolpert

Learn the skills to close your most important business deals. In this book Richard Wolpert shares the details of the deals he has completed with industry titans including Steve Jobs. Bill Gates, and many others. Richard also shares how he has been able to achieve such great success in deal making in his more than 30 year career that started out on the original software team for Macintosh at Apple. In addition, get the wisdom and insight of 22 other very successful… Show more

Editor: Richard Wolpert

Learn the skills to close your most important business deals. In this book Richard Wolpert shares the details of the deals he has completed with industry titans including Steve Jobs. Bill Gates, and many others. Richard also shares how he has been able to achieve such great success in deal making in his more than 30 year career that started out on the original software team for Macintosh at Apple. In addition, get the wisdom and insight of 22 other very successful business leaders and their secrets for closing deals including J.J.Abrams, Deepak Chopra, Peter Guber, Reid Hoffman, Penn Jillette and many others from fields as diverse as doing business with technology companies, in entertainment, with Africa, to deal making in war torn Iraq and Afghanistan. Whether you are in business school, have a job in business development, or just want insight into how deals really get done, this book is a must!

Contributors include:
J.J. Abrams
Deepak Chopra
Peter Guber
Melody Hobson
Joi Ito
Theresia Gouw
Whitney Johnson
Larry Lessig
Dr. Dambisa Moyo
Tim O'Reilly
Mark Suster Show less

This collection of specially-commissioned letters offers clear, calming and concise advice from across the spectrum of current leadership thinking. Written by respected business thinkers around the world, these 50 letters provide guidance, wisdom and personal insight into the particular challenges facing the business world today and anyone in a senior position.

Contributors include:
Jamie Anderson & Ayelet Baron
Scott Anthony
Christie Hunter Arscott & Lauren Noël
Marco… Show more

This collection of specially-commissioned letters offers clear, calming and concise advice from across the spectrum of current leadership thinking. Written by respected business thinkers around the world, these 50 letters provide guidance, wisdom and personal insight into the particular challenges facing the business world today and anyone in a senior position.

Contributors include:
Jamie Anderson & Ayelet Baron
Scott Anthony
Christie Hunter Arscott & Lauren Noël
Marco Bertini
Julian Birkinshaw & Jonas Ridderstråle
Linda Brimm
David Burkus
Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic
Henry Chesbrough
Sangeet Paul Choudary
Enrique Dans
Richard D'Aveni
Niraj Dawar
Erica Dhawan
Mark Esposito
Alessandro di Fiore
Peter Fisk
Marshall Goldsmith
Hal Gregersen
Anil Gupta & Haiyan Wang
Margaret Heffernan
Linda A Hill
Vlatka Hlupic
Whitney Johnson
Soren Kaplan
Martin Lindstrom
Chengwei Liu
Costas Markides
Roger Martin
Margarita Mayo
Liz Mellon
Nilofer Merchant
Erin Meyer
Lee Newman
Alex Osterwalder & Yves Pigneur
Tom Peters
Gianpiero Petriglieri
Doug Ready
Alf Rehn
Jonas Jonas Ridderstråle & Kjell Nordstrom
Antonio Nieto Rodriguez
Deborah Rowland
Juan Pablo Vazquez Sampere
Christian Stadler
Henry Stewart
Kate Sweetman
Don Tapscott
Dave Ulrich
Liz Wiseman
Chris Zook Show less

Leader to Leader, the France Hesselbein Institute's award-winning quarterly journal, offers cutting-edge thinking on leadership, management, and strategy written by today's top thought leaders from the private, public and social sectors.

Articles include "Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail," by John P. Kotter; "Choosing Strategies for Change," by John P. Kotter and Leonard A. Schlesinger; "Cultural Change That Sticks," by Jon R. Katzenbach, Ilona Steffen, and Caroline Kronley; "The Network Secrets of Great Change Agents," by Julie Battilana and Tiziana Casciaro; "Decoding Resistance to Change," by Jeffrey D. Ford and Laurie W. Ford; "The Innovator's DNA," by Jeffrey H. Dyer, Hal B. Gregersen, and Clayton M… Show more

Articles include "Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail," by John P. Kotter; "Choosing Strategies for Change," by John P. Kotter and Leonard A. Schlesinger; "Cultural Change That Sticks," by Jon R. Katzenbach, Ilona Steffen, and Caroline Kronley; "The Network Secrets of Great Change Agents," by Julie Battilana and Tiziana Casciaro; "Decoding Resistance to Change," by Jeffrey D. Ford and Laurie W. Ford; "The Innovator's DNA," by Jeffrey H. Dyer, Hal B. Gregersen, and Clayton M. Christensen; and "Disrupt Yourself," by Whitney Johnson. Show less

A compilation of essays about people who mentored and inspired them.

Have you always wanted to run your own business but not known where to start? Or perhaps you've already begun and need a healthy dose of inspiration? In this course, I build on my experience as the founder of an investment firm, and Wall Street analyst to provide an in-the-trenches view of entrepreneurship. Take a look at how to vet your idea, find your customers, launch lean, grow and scale, and look for funding to expand.
Topics include:

Finding your idea/problem to solve
… Show more

Have you always wanted to run your own business but not known where to start? Or perhaps you've already begun and need a healthy dose of inspiration? In this course, I build on my experience as the founder of an investment firm, and Wall Street analyst to provide an in-the-trenches view of entrepreneurship. Take a look at how to vet your idea, find your customers, launch lean, grow and scale, and look for funding to expand.
Topics include:

Finding your idea/problem to solve
Finding your first customer
Writing a business plan
Deciding on a legal structure
Building a team of employees and advisors
Marketing your business
Building a website
Minding cash
Managing stress
Funding growth
Balancing entrepreneurship and life

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Culled by the editors of Harvard Business Review from the magazine's rich archives, these articles are written by some of the world's leading management scholars and practioners.

HATE THE IDEA OF SCHMOOZING AND GLAD-HANDING TO SUCCEED? Most of us feel that way. But you don't have to be slick and indiscriminate to create and sustain a strong network. In fact, you're much better off being yourself and connecting selectively--that's how you'll build relationships with real value. The "HBR Guide to Networking" will give you the tools and confidence you need to get your ideas off the ground, draw on others' expertise, scope out business opportunities, and land coveted roles.… Show more

HATE THE IDEA OF SCHMOOZING AND GLAD-HANDING TO SUCCEED? Most of us feel that way. But you don't have to be slick and indiscriminate to create and sustain a strong network. In fact, you're much better off being yourself and connecting selectively--that's how you'll build relationships with real value. The "HBR Guide to Networking" will give you the tools and confidence you need to get your ideas off the ground, draw on others' expertise, scope out business opportunities, and land coveted roles. Whether you're a new professional or an experienced one, this guide will help you: (1) create and maintain the right ties in a way that feels authentic, (2) nourish relationships through give and take, (3) share--and spread--ideas, (4) use social media tools to network, (5) manage your image online, and (6) reach out after losing touch. Show less

Disruptive innovation has been a pioneering concept in business since 1995. Johnson, a founding partner at Clay Christensen’s investment firm, explains how you can apply disruptive thinking—responsible for the success of many products, companies, and even countries—to your own career. Using the stories of highly successful personal innovators, including herself, she articulates four principles of self-disruption:

1. Target a need that can be met more effectively. Playing in a market… Show more

Disruptive innovation has been a pioneering concept in business since 1995. Johnson, a founding partner at Clay Christensen’s investment firm, explains how you can apply disruptive thinking—responsible for the success of many products, companies, and even countries—to your own career. Using the stories of highly successful personal innovators, including herself, she articulates four principles of self-disruption:

1. Target a need that can be met more effectively. Playing in a market where no one else is or wants to be might mean leaving your comfortable career perch for an amorphous role. But it will enable you to head off the competition and could generate rewards you’d never envisioned.

2. Identify your disruptive strengths. Think about what you do exceptionally well that most others can’t. Then use that discovery to make an innovative transition.

3. Step back (or sideways) in order to grow. Personal growth can stall at the top of a classic S curve. Avoid that problem by jumping to a new plane and putting yourself on an entirely different growth trajectory.

4. Let your strategy emerge. Don’t hesitate to be flexible and inductive in your approach to personal innovation. Disrupters take a step forward, gather feedback, and adapt accordingly.
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Dare, Dream, Do is a a huge departure from my Wall Street reports where the language was technical and involved downgrading or upgrading a stock. It is instead a very personal piece, one that started out as a blog in 2006 when I discovered that many of the supremely capable individuals I knew, especially women, were not dreaming. I wanted to build the case that dreaming was their privilege and birthright, and also persuade myself that what I had accomplished to date wasn't a one-off… Show more

Dare, Dream, Do is a a huge departure from my Wall Street reports where the language was technical and involved downgrading or upgrading a stock. It is instead a very personal piece, one that started out as a blog in 2006 when I discovered that many of the supremely capable individuals I knew, especially women, were not dreaming. I wanted to build the case that dreaming was their privilege and birthright, and also persuade myself that what I had accomplished to date wasn't a one-off. Eventually I invited women to share the stories of their dreams. If you are looking for a traditional business book, this is not it. If you are looking to dream in the midst of the messiness of your life, and in the face of competing dreams, I invite you to read Dare, Dream, Do. Show less

Dare, Dream, Do is a a huge departure from my Wall Street reports where the language was technical and involved downgrading or upgrading a stock. It is instead a very personal piece, one that started out as a blog in 2006 when I discovered that many of the supremely capable individuals I knew, especially women, were not dreaming. I wanted to build the case that dreaming was their privilege and birthright, and also persuade myself that what I had accomplished to date wasn't a one-off… Show more

Dare, Dream, Do is a a huge departure from my Wall Street reports where the language was technical and involved downgrading or upgrading a stock. It is instead a very personal piece, one that started out as a blog in 2006 when I discovered that many of the supremely capable individuals I knew, especially women, were not dreaming. I wanted to build the case that dreaming was their privilege and birthright, and also persuade myself that what I had accomplished to date wasn't a one-off. Eventually I invited women to share the stories of their dreams. If you are looking for a traditional business book, this is not it. If you are looking to dream in the midst of the messiness of your life, and in the face of competing dreams, I invite you to read Dare, Dream, Do.
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Understanding, harnessing and developing organizational ecosystems

This is a compendium of articles on how to manage up from the archives of Harvard Business Review.

Use this approach for talent development, succession planning, and team configuration.