Clockwise: Teaching Students to Think

December 2011 Draft IV

WORKING PAPER

TEACHING STUDENTS TO THINK

Giles Jackson, Ph.D. Associate Professor Byrd School of Business Shenandoah University

President, GenEd LLC giles@gened.co 202.257.4854

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“If we “teach” business (or history, geography, etc.) we do not give our students an important tool they will need to be successful ... the ability to “think” through issues & problems and gather !"#$%&'()*&(#+*)+*,-.'*-*/'%&!&+(*-(/*)-.'*-%)&+(0** Leaders and managers must be able to act decisively.

Effective thinking skills provide the means.”

– Robert Hein, former CFO, Airbus North America Senior Executive Counselor, Byrd School of Business

“The primary mission for education can no longer be just teaching the subjects in the curriculum. It must include understanding the process of learning itself.”

– James Zull, From Brain to Mind

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Contents I. Introduction ................................................................................ 3 Analytical thinking .........................................................................................3 Critical thinking ..............................................................................................3 Lateral thinking ...............................................................................................3

II. Clockwise at a glance .................................................................. 4 Concept development ....................................................................................4 Sample Clockwise chart................................................................................. 5

III. Clockwise in the classroom ......................................................... 7 Content ..........................................................................................................7 Laying the foundation .....................................................................................7 Clockwise protocol .........................................................................................8 Student research ...........................................................................................13

IV. Bottom-up innovation ....................................................................13 V. Clockwise: does it make a difference? ............................................14 Further information ............................................................................14 Acknowledgements ...........................................................................14 Appendix: Sample FT summaries ........................................................15

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I. Introduction David Smith of Oxford University observed that although universities are devoted to research, they pay little attention to using research to improve the teaching and learning process.1*1(*2"!&('!!*-!*&(*+)3'4*$'5/!6*)3'*2-!&%*74+25',* is that the complexity and dynamism of the world beyond our walls far exceeds our capacity to describe, let alone explain it. Yet we go on telling students how things are, what they mean, and what to do. Of course the basics are important, but what they really need are the tools to ask the right questions and work things out for themselves. As )3'*83&('!'*74+9'42*!-:!6*;<&9'*-*,-(*-*$!3*-(/*:+"*#''/*3&,*#+4*-*/-:0*='-%3*-*,-(*)+*$!3*-(/*:+"*#''/*3&,*#+4*-* lifetime.’ The capacity for independent thought rests upon three core skills: analytical, critical and lateral thinking.

Analytical thinking According to Robert Hein, former CFO of Airbus North America: “The business environment today is extremely fast moving and decisions must be made RAPIDLY using SUFFICIENT information. Therefore, students must learn how to gather the necessary info to aid in decision making and to disregard the time wasting but readily available chaff.”

Are we up to the task? In his book The Shallows, Christopher Carr warned that the modern brain is atrophying due )+*&(%4'-!&(>*1()'4(')*"!'0*?'*5&9'*&(*-*@+45/*+#*%"4!+4:*4'-/&(>6*3"44&'/*-(/*/&!)4-%)'/*)3&(.&(>*-(/*!"7'4$%&-5* learning. Many students lack the ability and/or stamina to rapidly assimilate and concisely reproduce a complex argument in its entirely. This and other basic analytical skills are essential to the higher order ones discussed below.

Critical thinking A recent study called Academically Adrift*#+"(/*)3-)*&(*)3'*$4!)*)@+*:'-4!*+#*%+55'>'6*)3'4'*@'4'*(+*!)-)&!)&%-55:* !&>(&$%-()*>-&(!*&(*%4&)&%-5*)3&(.&(>6*%+,75'A*4'-!+(&(>*-(/*@4&)&(>*!.&55!*#+4*-)*5'-!)*BC*7'4%'()*+#*)3'*,+4'*)3-(* 2300 participants.2 Why? One reason is that the education system trains students to answer questions, not ask them. Roger Martin, dean of the Rotman School said: “Most MBA programs are taught in such a way that rather than owning the models, the models own students.” 3 The leadership failures of the recent past can be attributed in part to this lack of critical thinking, which makes us more cognizant of our own biases and inclinations. One of the basic skills in running an enterprise is recognizing that you could be wrong and that there may be a better way.

Lateral thinking “More than anything else, being an educated person means being able to see connections that allow one to make sense of the world and act within it in creative ways,” wrote William Cronon.4 Educated people are much in demand.

A recent IBM study found that chief executives worldwide consider creativity the number one quality that leaders need to possess, with 60 per cent of them naming it as their top priority. Daniel Pink went as far as to say that socalled ‘right-brainers’ will rule the future.

Creativity depends on ‘abductive reasoning’ – the logic of discovery. But how do we learn to ‘see’ connections in the $4!)*75-%'D*=3&!*4'E"&4'!*-(*-/'E"-)'5:*/'9'5+7'/*-!!+%&-)&9'*!:!)',0*F=3'*,+4'*%+7&+"!*)3'*-!!+%&-)&9'*!:!)',!6*)3'* completer the individual’s adaptations to the world,” said the philosopher William James, adding that the goodness of our associative systems depends on two things: the persistency of the associations, and their number.5 Associations -4'*/'9'5+7'/*)34+">3*5-)'4-5*)3&(.&(>6*2")*)3&!*&!*/&#$%"5)*&(*)3'*-%-/',:*@&)3*&)!*%+()&("+"!5:*!"2/&9&/&(>* specialties. Still, we can no longer leave it up to students to do the hard integrative work. That level of understanding /+'!*(+)*G"!)*,->&%-55:*','4>'*5&.'*-*"(&$'/*$'5/*#4+,*-55*+#*+"4*!7'%&-5&H'/*!)"/&'!0*I4>"-25:6*(+@*)3-)*)3'*"(&9'4!'* +#*&(#+4,-)&+(*&!*-)*+"4*$(>'4)&7!6*&()'>4-)&+(*!3+"5/*2'%+,'*-*/&!)&(%)&9'*%+,7')'(%'*+#*)3'*"(&9'4!&):0*

______ 1 The Idea of a University (1999), edited by David Smith and Anne Karin Langslow. Jessica Kingsley Publishers 2 www.npr.org/2011/02/09/133310978/in-college-a-lack-of-rigor-leaves-students-adrift J**3))7KLL25+>!03240+4>L3+@M)+M$AM2"!&('!!M!%3++5!LNOOPLOBL,2-!M+@('/M2:M)3'&4M,+/'5!03),5 4 www.williamcronon.net/writing/Cronon_Only_Connect.pdf 5 Talks to Teachers0*@@@0>")'(2'4>0+4>L$5'!LQRNSTLQRNSTM3LQRNSTM303),

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II. Clockwise at a glance Concept development I have long used the Financial Times as a starting point for class discussion, yet saw the potential to do so much more with this invaluable resource. Business schools are under pressure to be more relevant, and the FT – widely regarded as the world’s best international business newspaper – seemed a good starting point for bridging the gap between the academy and the real world. Moreover, I saw in the FT a common language – a means of mutual understanding and %+($/'(%'*-2+")*2"!&('!!*-(/*@+45/*-##-&4!*U*)3-)*!)"/'()!*!3+"5/*2'*&()4+/"%'/*)+*!++('4*4-)3'4*)3-(*5-)'40* In order to make the FT more accessible, in the summer of 2009 I began building a corpus of summaries of FT articles, which now exceeds 1500 entries. These sumamries are not only shorter, but also better organized, including sub-headings where necessary. Although my summaries were helpful, students still felt overwhelmed.6 I realized that what students needed was a structure to help them work through the content systematically, assimilate the main ideas and assess what they were having trouble understanding. Clockwise began as a purely analytical exercise, and then evolved to accomodate the questions and connections that naturally emerge during any analytical exercise and which are integral to the process of ‘thinking things through.’ Clockwise thus integrates analytical, critical and lateral thinking into a single framework.

Applied to any given subject matter, the goal is to make a complete revolution in the prescribed order (Fig. i). The clockwise movement starts with analysis – the breaking down of content into its constituent parts. Critical thinking broadens the analysis, and lateral thinking pushes the boundaries further still.

Analytical, critical and lateral thinking skills are like muscles that need regular exercise and conditioning.

Clockwise is meant to be a recursive practice, one that repeats in a self-similar way. Think of it as a widening gyre, encompassing more and more knowledge as it spirals upwards over time – knowledge that may enlarge the vision and enhance the power of judging situations in business, if not in life.

Fig (i)

Comment: Knowledge is a process, “a system of transformations that become progressively adequate” (Piaget) R*V4'5&,&(-4:*$(/&(>!*#4+,*=3'*8&)-)&+(*V4+G'%)*&(/&%-)'*4'9'-5*)3-)*!)"/'()!*>'('4-55:*#-&5*)+*4'-/*/''75:0*W+4*,+4'*&(#+4,-)&+(*+(*)3&!*@&/'!74'-/* problem see chronicle.com/article/Escalation-in-Digital/129652

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Fig. (ii) below shows a sample Clockwise chart, and beneath it, my summary of an article by Geoffrey Owen, a former editor of the Financial Times.7 The chart summarizes the main points of the article in bullet point form (analytical thinking), critiques the article (critical thinking), and then makes connections with relevant articles, theories and organizations (lateral thinking).

Sample Clockwise chart Fig. (ii) ARTICLE #1027: WHICH GOVERNMENT MODEL IS BEST? By Geoffrey Owen

______ 7 The original FT article, ‘A very British split at the top,’ is available at ft.com

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Financial Times article summary 1027: WHICH GOVERNANCE MODEL IS BEST? In spite of a recent increase in the number of independent chairmen (i.e. someone who has never worked for the company before their appointment, or had commercial ties with it), most US companies combine the posts of chairman and chief executive in one person, says Geoffrey Owen, although the tendency in recent years has been for ,+4'*,-G+4*XY*%+,7-(&'!*)+*!'7-4-)'*)3'*)@+*)+7*7+!)!0*1(*NOOC6*TQ*7'4*%'()*+#*)3'*%3-&4,'(*+#*YZV*COO*$4,!*@'4'* also CEO. This had declined to 60 percent by 2010.

Nowadays, most UK companies are run by a chief executive and, alongside him or her, a chairman who is usually both part-time and independent. There is some skepticism about the British approach, mainly on the grounds that it %-(*5'-/*)+*%+([&%)*-(/*%+(#"!'/*4'!7+(!&2&5&)&'!*-)*)3'*)+70** To shed more light on this issue, Mr. Owen conducted a study called Evolution or revolution? Changes in Britain’s boards of directors from 1960 to 2010*+(*2'3-5#*+#*Y7'(%'4*Y)"-4)6*)3'*'A'%")&9'*4'%4"&),'()*$4,0*\+@'9'46*&)*&!* not clear whether a split structure makes for better-performing companies. “Most of the current and former British chairmen and institutional investors who were interviewed for the study believe the British system is best. Their view is that too much concentration of power at the top is dangerous and that this cannot be offset by the US practice of appointing a lead director from among the outside board members to act as a partial counterweight to the chairman/ chief executive”, says Mr. Owen.

On the other hand, several chairmen interviewed for the study had served on dysfunctional boards, and the source of the problem often lay in an unsatisfactory relationship between the two people at the top. This may happen, for example, when a newly appointed chairman takes on the job soon after serving as chief executive in another %+,7-(:*@3'4'*)3':*@'4'*"!'/*)+*4"5&(>*)3'*4++!)6*-(/*)3"!*$(/*&)*3-4/*)+*4'!)4-&(*)3',!'59'!0*Y+,'*%+,7-(&'!* 3-9'*-77+&()'/*#+4,'4*%3&'#*$(-(%&-5*+#$%'4!*-!*%3-&4,'(*4-)3'4*)3-(*#+4,'4*%3&'#*'A'%")&9'!0*\+@'9'46*-* 2-%.>4+"(/*&(*$(-(%'*/+'!*(+)*('%'!!-4&5:*74+9&/'*)3'*24+-/*!)4-)'>&%*+9'49&'@*(''/'/*&(*-*%3-&4,-(0 “The dilemma that all chairmen face is how much or how little to intervene. At one extreme are chairmen who, 7'43-7!*#+4*7'4!+(-5&):*4'-!+(!*+4*2'%-"!'*+#*&(!"#$%&'()*.(+@5'/>'*+#*)3'*2"!&('!!6*-4'*"(-25'*)+*!)-(/*"7*)+*-* dominant chief executive. At the other are chairmen who are tempted to second-guess the executive team”, says Mr. Owen. One chairman interviewed in the study said that ideally, you want a dynamic CEO and a wiser, more prudent chairman, but this does not happen in many cases. Another said that the single most important thing is that the chairman has the interests of the company at heart, rather than his or her political or personal interests. ](*)3'*+)3'4*3-(/6*Y&4*^-9&/*?-5.'4_!*4'%'()*4'9&'@*+#*%+47+4-)'*>+9'4(-(%'*&(*$(-(%&-5*&(!)&)")&+(!*!">>'!)'/*)3-)* some banks had overstressed independence at the expense of knowledge. Boards that had appointed the retiring %3&'#*'A'%")&9'*-!*%3-&4,-(*U*)3"!*/'7-4)&(>*#4+,*)3'*&(/'7'(/'(%'*%4&)'4&-*5-&/*/+@(*&(*)3'*%+47+4-)'*>+9'4(-(%'* %+/'*U*3-/*7'4#+4,'/*4'5-)&9'5:*@'55*&(*)3'*$(-(%&-5*%4&!&!0*I5)3+">3*&(/"!)4:M!7'%&$%*'A7'4&'(%'*&!*(+*>"-4-()''* that the appointee will be a good chairman (that depends much more on the individual’s personal qualities), the Walker review suggests that knowledge of the business, or at least experience in a related or similar business, should be given greater weight in the appointment of a new chairman. Echoing this, one interviewee in Owen’s study said that the necessary mutual respect between chairman and chief executive “can’t happen if the chairman does not understand the industry. If you are ignorant, you can end up becoming a puppet”.

The Walker review indicated that the role of chairman has acquired greater importance in recent years. It is more demanding, and may include the requirement to be the face of the company, dealing with external stakeholders as @'55*-!*!3-4'3+5/'4!*`*'!7'%&-55:*/"4&(>*)&,'!*+#*%4&!&!0*=3'*%3-&4,-(*(''/!*)+*2'*E"-5&$'/*)+*4"(*)3'*%+,7-(:*&(*-(* emergency, if for some reason the chief executive is unable to do the job and no successor is yet in place. =3'*?-5.'4*4'9&'@*%+(%5"/'/*)3-)*)3'*%-7-2&5&)&'!*4'E"&4'/*)+*2'*-(*'##'%)&9'*%3-&4,-(*-4'*7-4)5:*&((-)'*U*!"%3*-!* !)-,&(-6*%+"4->'*-(/*+7'(('!!*)+*('@*&/'-!*U*-(/*7-4)5:*5'-4(-25'6*&(%5"/&(>*',7-)3:6*5&!)'(&(>*)+*-55*7+&()!*+#* 9&'@6*4'-%3&(>*%+(%5"!&+(!*@&)3+")*-77'-4&(>*)+*/+,&(-)'6*-(/*2"&5/&(>*%+($/'(%'*&(*%+55'->"'!0*F<++/*%3-&4,'(* @&55*-5@-:!*2'*3-4/*)+*$(/*2")*2'))'4*74'7-4-)&+(*-(/*,+4'*',73-!&!*+(*)3'*5'-4(-25'*7-4)!*+#*)3'*G+2*,-.'*&)*,+4'* likely that the board will function well”, says Mr. Owen. (Source: Financial Times, March 14 2011) 6 © GenEd LLC

III. Clockwise in the classroom Content Each FT summary is assigned to one of three categories: issues, cases and bios.

Issues: The title of each article summary consists of a question, e.g. ‘Which governance model is best,’ ‘What do the best leaders have in common?’ ‘What‘s the value of a good mentor?’ ‘How do you delegate effectively?’ ‘How do you resurrect an iconic brand?’ Each of these articles is assigned a sub-category, such as entrepreneurship, business !)4-)'>:6*5'-/'4!3&76*>5+2-5*)4-/'6*24-(/&(>6*!"775:*%3-&(*,-(->','()6*$(-(%&-5*,-(->','()6*,-%4+'%+(+,&%!6* sustainability, information technology, intellectual property, corporate governance, etc.

Cases: These are mini case studies on individual companies that bring business issues to life.

BiosK*=3'!'*-4'*74+$5'!*+#*'()4'74'('"4!6*%+47+4-)'*'A'%")&9'!6*)3+">3)*5'-/'4!6*-(/*!)-.'3+5/'4!*a&(%5"/&(>*2"!&('!!* %4&)&%!b0*Y)"/'()!*$(/*2&+!*&()'4'!)&(>*2'%-"!'*)3':*4'9'-5*@3-)*4'-55:*,-.'!*7'+75'*)&%.0*W+4*'A-,75'6*=-,-4-* Mellon, founder of Jimmy Choo said: “People who are over-educated become risk-averse.” This is rarely heard in business school, but it’s something students should know.

See Appendix for examples of issues, cases and bios.

In early 2011, the FT granted me permission to use the summaries in my courses (upper division undergraduate electives and MBA core courses, including the capstone course ‘Integrative Management’). Content is customized for each course. For the capstone, students vote on which issues, cases and bios they want to study.

Laying the foundation Students are used to seeing the entire educational journey laid out before them like an assembly line. With Clockwise, however, the journey is less predictable. It’s a structured process of inquiry, yet often takes on a life of its +@(6*$55'/*@&)3*)3'*"(-()&%&7-)'/0*I)*)&,'!*&)*!'',!*@'*-4'*G"!)*>+&(>*4+"(/*&(*%&4%5'!*-(/*(+)*>'))&(>*-(:@3'4'0*1* reassure the students that they are always moving, and more to the point, as long as they take responsibility for their own progress along the way, they are always moving upwards. Starting out, they need only accept whatever they will encounter with an open mind.

Tutorials on the method include a foray into hermeneutics, the branch of philosophy concerned with situations in which we encounter meanings that are not immediately understandable but require interpretive effort. The fundamental question is how to bridge the gap between the familiar in which we stand, and the strange meaning that resists assimilation into the horizons of our world.8 A classic hermeneutical dilemma is that one cannot understand a sentence without understanding the text, yet cannot understand the whole text without understanding individual sentences. The solution is to reconcile part and whole through successively adjusted provisional understandings, thereby merging the horizons of author(s) and interpreter.9 ?'*-5!+*4'9&'@*Y)-(#+4/*7!:%3+5+>&!)*8-4+5*^@'%._!*@+4.*+(*,&(/!')!0*V'+75'*@&)3*-*;$A'/_*,&(/!')*2'5&'9'*)3'&4* basic qualities, such intelligence or talent, are immutable and that effort makes little or no difference. A ‘growth’ mindset, on the other hand, puts a premium on learning and resilience, which is essential for accomplishing -(:)3&(>*!&>(&$%-()010 A growth mindset is a prerequisite for Clockwise to work.

______ 8 Philosophical Hermeneutics*2:*\-(!M<'+4>*<-/-,'4*aQPTRb6*70*A&&0*\'4,'('")&%!*74'/-)'!*#+4,-5*5+>&%6*5-(>"->'*-(/*)3'*!%&'()&$%*,')3+/* and forms the basis of rationality. It arose out of the need to decipher religious texts.

9 Wilhelm Dilthey (1833–1911) abstracted this idea in the form of the ‘hermeneutic circle,’ which expresses the dialogical relationship between part and whole.

10 www.educationworld.com/a_issues/chat/chat010.shtml

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Clockwise protocol In its current iteration, Clockwise is applied in a 3-stage process (Fig. iii). In Stage 1, students prepare charts for each of the assigned articles (issues, cases and bios) prior to class. They may use a large pad and pencil, or free mindmapping software. In class we build composite charts for each of these articles (Stage 2), and then compare and contrast them (Stage 3). The knowledge acquired during class discussion helps students with Stage 1 (hence the feedback loop).

Fig. (iii)

These stages are discussed in more detail below.

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STAGE 1: INDEPENDENT WORK (1) Preparation ****c*d'-/*)34+">3*-4)&%5'6*%+(!"5)&(>*-(:*@'2!&)'!*%&)'/* ****c*<+*+(5&('*)+*%5-4&#:*-(:*"(#-,&5&-4*)'4,!6*'0>0*;%+()'A)M-@-4'*%+,7")&(>_ From a hermeneutical perspective, misunderstandings between interpreter and author are taken to be the natural order of things, because of inevitable differences in world view, word meanings, and so forth. The ‘conversation’ begins when we genuinely open ourselves up to the text by listening to the author(s) and allow them to assert their point of view. Moreover, confrontation with the ‘other’ throws into relief the limits of our own assumptions. The more we look into it, the more the text questions us.

(2) Summarize (analytical thinking) ****c*8+(%&!'5:*4'74+/"%'*,-&(*7+&()!*+#*-4)&%5'*&(*2"55')*7+&()*#+4,-)* In this step, the interpreter’s goal is to break the subject matter down into its constituent parts. If students have done their homework, then this step is relatively straightforward. However, summaries often miss important information because students do not read the source material carefully enough, or may fail to grasp the author(s) intent. Most students have either never written a précis before, or have limited experience in doing so. Consequently there is considerable variation among the students’ summaries, particularly early on. But as the semester progresses, their output becomes more uniform. I emphasize that the end result is only as good as the initial analysis.

(3) Critique (critical thinking) ****c**I!!'!!*)3'*%+()4&2")&+(*+#*)3'*-4)&%5'*)+*)3'*2+/:*+#*.(+@5'/>' ****c**83-55'(>'*%5-&,!6*#-%)!*-(/*+7&(&+(!*-(/*"(!)-)'/*-!!",7)&+(!*&(*)'4,!*+#*)3'&4*5+>&%6*%5-4&):6*4+2"!)('!!6* -775&%-2&5&):6*!&>(&$%-(%'6*+,&!!&+(!6*')%0*X!'*!-,'*2"55')*7+&()*#+4,-) Critical thinking, which has its origins in ancient Greece, proceeds from the recognition that all reasoning occurs within frames of reference and therefore cannot be taken for granted. In keeping with this tradition, I ask students to assess facts, arguments, opinions and unstated assumptions in terms of their logic, clarity, robustness, and limitations.

I want students to identify blind spots in the author’s reasoning by subjecting the analysis to critical review. Words or word combinations often act as cues that recall previously studied articles, previously made charts and previously held discussions from which a critique can be mounted. I also ask students to highlight what’s valuable about the content--its contribution to the body of knowledge, its usefulness to real-world decision-making, and so forth. A fair critique is a balance critique.

Comment: We have experimented with various strategies to generate fresh insights, such as putting ourselves in the shoes of different FT writers to ask how they’d interpret the subject matter, or conducting thought experiments (e.g. ‘how would this work in a smaller company, in a different sector, or at a different stage of the life cycle?’)

We also try to put the subject matter into a more far-reaching perspective. My goal is to cultivate the unnatural ability )+*)3&(.*2':+(/*)3'*('A)*E"-4)'4U-!*@'55*-!*2':+(/*+('_!*+@(*(-)&+(-5*2+4/'4!0* The point is that there are many ways to approach the critique. The ability to see all that is questionable in the subject matter is limited only by the imagination.

Over time, the critiques do tend to become sharper and more insightful, because students are able to draw from a broader and deeper knowledge base.

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(4) Connect (lateral thinking) ****c**1/'()&#:*4'5'9-()*-4)&%5'!6*)3'+4&'!6*+4>-(&H-)&+(!

Edward de Bono coined the term ‘lateral thinking’ to describe a range of strategies (eg use of random words) to '!%-7'*)3'*(-44+@*%+($('!*+#*5&('-4*)3&(.&(>*-(/*2'*,+4'*%4'-)&9'0*\+@'9'46*%4'-)&9&):*%-(*2'*%+"()'474+/"%)&9'6* even dangerous, in the absence of real understanding. In my view we need an intermediate step in which ‘thinking laterally’ means connecting the dots, not thinking outside the box (this comes later, in Stage 3).

“Our goal At this stage the focus is on understanding through integration.

The student’s task is to make connections, cross disciplinary boundaries, and bridge the chasm between academia and the real world. =3'*$4!)*!)'7*&!*)+*5&!)*+)3'4*-4)&%5'!*a&!!"'!6*%-!'!*-(/*2&+!b* that seem relevant to the subject matter.

should be a spontaneous demonstration of habits of mind.

We can claim success if learners /',+(!)4-)'*+7)&,&!,*-(/*%+($/'(%'6* proceed to take actions, and ask questions when given a task. This is in contrast to

getting it right. The machines will get it The second step is to identify potentially useful academic theories relating to the subject matter. In the case of corporate right if they are asked the governance, for example, relevant theories might include right questions.” agency theory, stakeholder theory, and Coase’s theory of the $4,0*F=3'4'*&!*(+)3&(>*!+*74-%)&%-5*-!*-*>++/*)3'+4:6e*!-&/*f"4)* – James Zull, From Brain to Mind Lewin, and the student’s task is to seek these out. Students are encouraged to mentally trawl back what they have learned in other courses, or failing that, to conduct an online search (using databases such as Blackwell Synergy Journals, Lexis-Nexis, Proquest Dissertations & Theses, etc).

The third step is to identify relevant organizations doing practical work that’s relevant to the subject matter. These connections are useful as a reference for class discussions, and also for research purposes (details on term paper to follow).

Comment: While there is no shortage of theories, we know relatively little about how and why theories are selected to solve real-world problems. Students vastly prefer the opportunity and challenge of seeking out and testing different #4-,'@+4.!*@&)3*-*!7'%&$%*74+25',*&(*,&(/6*)3-(*5'-4(&(>*-*!5'@*+#*)3'+4&'!*&(*-*9-%"",0**I!*^-(&'5*V&(.*@4+)'*&(* his book Drive6*>&9'*3",-(*2'&(>!*)3'*+77+4)"(&):*)+*-%3&'9'*)34''*)3&(>!*U*-")+(+,:6*,-!)'4:*-(/*7"47+!'*U*-(/* you will get better results than if you rely solely on extrinsic incentives such as grades.

(5) State key message ****c**^')'4,&('*@3-)*)3'*%'()4-5*,'!!->'*+#*)3'*%3-4)*!3+"5/*2'0*V5-%'*-)*)3'*%'()'40* =3&!*&!*)3'*$(-5*7&'%'*)+*)3'*7"HH5'0*^')'4,&(&(>*)3'*%'()4-5*,'!!->'*&!*(+)*-5@-:!*!)4-&>3)#+4@-4/0*1)*4'E"&4'!*)3'* ability to look at the chart from the right distance, the point at which innumerable pixels form a compelling picture.

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STAGE 2: GROUP WORK

“If you have an There is no canonical interpretation of an article, and every interpretation is different. The composite chart is thus borne of the interplay between apple and I have an apple participants, each bringing something to the table. The outcome is all and we exchange these apples the more valuable when seasoned practitioners are brought into the then you and I will still each have mix.

My role is to lead the discussion. We create up to six composite charts on three large whiteboards in the classroom. The main tasks are to agree on the key point to be included in the chart, exhaust the critiques and connections, and decide on the central message.

one apple. But if you have an idea

and I have an idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas.”

Comment: One of the most striking things about the process is how – George Bernard Shaw students come to realize the virtue of collaboration. Modern education is very much about individual achievement, which is increasingly at odds with what business wants. “The ability to harness ideas, people and resources from across boundaries of all kinds has become a business essential,” wrote the Harvard Business Review recently. The composite chart – a collaborative effort – proves what can be achieved when people put their heads together.

“I believe that your “Clockwise” approach is an effective method of bringing the importance of thinking skills to students. The classroom experience certainly showed how this “hands-on” approach enlivened the teaching opportunity!”

–Robert Hein, former CFO Airbus North America STAGE 3: PATTERN RECOGNITION The mathematician Marcus du Sautoy said what gives him a dopamine rush is getting that “Aha!” moment when )3&(>!*$)*)+>')3'40**F=3'*24-&(*&!*74+>4-,,'/*)+*5++.*#+4*7-))'4(!*`*&)_!*3+@*@'*.(+@*!+,')3&(>*&!*!&>(&$%-()6e*3'* explained, adding that we all need that sense of contributing to a community that validates what we do.

Stage 3 of the Clockwise method is all about pattern-seeking in a community. After all, what is business education but experience in advance--learning which patterns and rules to repeat or adapt and which to avoid. This is accomplished by successive rounds of higher order lateral thinking in which we compare and contrast charts, identifying common themes, generating ideas, formulating hypotheses, and exploring how problems found in any given chart might be solved with solutions found in others (Fig iv).

Fig. (iv)

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Example: In one MBA capstone course, we were discussing four composite charts, based on an article by Peter Guber, producer of the movie Rain Man, discussing the importance of telling a good story; a case study of the Procter & Gamble Dry Max diaper debacle; an article on the value of hiring a public relations professional; and a bio of Gary Vaynerchuck, an entrepreneur who has become a wine guru for the Internet generation. Connecting the /+)!6*!)"/'()!*!-@*3+@*&(["'()&-5*25+>>'4!*)+5/*!)+4&'!*)+*'(%+"4->'*%"!)+,'4!*)+*)"4(*->-&(!)*VZ<6*-(/*3+@*)3'* %+,7-(:*3&4'/*-*)+7*Vd*$4,*)+*%+"()'4-%)*)3'*('>-)&9'*2"HH6*'9&/'()5:*@&)3*!"%%'!!0*d'-/&(>*)3'*2&+6*)3':*-5!+* saw the value of doing your own PR, and what it takes to pull it off. Vaynerchuck invested years into cultivating an online community, recently spending six hours on Twitter answering questions about his new book. At this point the discussion often takes some interesting turns. If P&G had invested more time cultivating an online community, would there have even been a crisis? Given that this category turns over quickly as parents move in and out of child rearing, how damaging can a crisis be?

In another class, the topics were the downside to being a disruptive entrepreneur, the personal traits that separate winners from losers, the criteria for evaluating investment opportunities, and the transition from entrepreneur to professional management. Connecting the dots, students saw how the article on disruptive entrepreneurs perfectly illustrated the winning trait of being able to bounce back from disappointments. Having gained a better appreciation +#*@3-)*&)*)-.'!*)+*!"%%''/6*!)"/'()!*2'))'4*"(/'4!)++/*@3:*&)*&!*!+*/&#$%"5)*&)*&!*)+*5')*>+0*=3'(6*-!*-5@-:!6*)3'* discussion went in multiple directions. “Isn’t it possible to let go without actually relinquishing control?” asked one student, pointing out that Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group empowers his CEOs by making them ownermanagers, yet remains chairman of the board. Class discussions are richer still when seasoned practitioners are brought into the mix.

The more dissimilar the articles, the harder students must work to make connections. That’s why the initial choice of -4)&%5'!*&(*-(:*>&9'(*%5-!!*&!*%4"%&-50*1#*-55*)3'*-4)&%5'!*-4'*-2+")*'()4'74'('"4!3&76*!)"/'()!*@&55*$(/*&)*'-!:*)+*,-.'* connections. By combining articles from different functional areas, industries, and cultures, I can force students to cross more boundaries. “My head hurts,” said one student after class. The work may be challenging, but offers great rewards, not least of which is a real sense of ownership in the learning process.

As mentioned above, Clockwise is a recursive practice. Having completed Stage 3, students begin the process all over again: forging new connections, comparing and contrasting viewpoints, discerning patterns and underlying 4"5'!6*,-.&(>*$('*/&!)&(%)&+(!6*-!.&(>*7+&>(-()*E"'!)&+(!6*-(/*>'('4-)&(>*&/'-!*-(/*3:7+)3'!'!0*** Comment: What’s surprising is the way certain issues keep cropping up from week to week, even as the subject matter changes. This is not unlike the process of natural selection. We build up a population of ideas that vary -,+(>*)3',!'59'!0*I!*)&,'*>+*2:*)3':*'&)3'4*>4+@*,+4'*4+2"!)*+4*@&)3'4*-@-:6*/'7'(/&(>*+(*)3'&4*$)('!!0*gA-,75'!* of particularly robust themes include ‘contingent decision-making’ (the notion that there is no best way to organize a corporation, to lead a company, or to make decisions), ‘constructive dissension’ (the antidote to groupthink), ‘derisking strategies’ (reducing commercial risk by, for example, building a customer pipeline in advance), and ‘soft skills development’ (such as empathy and listening).

From here we can start to think about the applicable rules, which we usually don’t do. In his book The Black Swan, trader turned author Nassim Taleb explains that the structure of our minds is such that we look at the facts, and just the facts. “Metarules (such as the rule that we have a tendency to not learn rules) we don’t seem to be good at getting,” he says. “We scorn the abstract; we scorn it with passion.” But to survive in a complex and increasingly recursive environment (ie one full of feedback loops), we need to go beyond facts to get at the underlying rules.11 Taleb says that in a world driven increasingly by unpredictable events with outsize effects (Black Swans), what you /+(__)*.(+@*&!*#-4*,+4'*4'5'9-()*)3-(*@3-)*:+"*/+*.(+@0*=+*"(/'4!)-(/*-(:*73'(+,'(+(6*:+"*(''/*$4!)*)+*%+(!&/'4* the extremes. Yet we teach the opposite: to rule out the extraordinary and focus on the “normal.” Many students rarely venture beyond the prescribed readings. This rules out important sources of uncertainty, including potential +77+4)"(&)&'!*-(/*)34'-)!0*1)*-5!+*&(%4'-!'!*)3'*5&.'5&3++/*+#*%+($4,-)&+(*'44+4!*`*)3'*)'(/'(%:*)+*%+($4,*+")* knowledge, not our ignorance. Lateral thinking is the antidote. It compels us to consider the fuzziness of boundaries and revise our categories, closing the gap between what we know and what we think we know.

______

11 Rules help facilitate the ‘transfer’ of what is learned in class to future problems. According to David Sousa, transfer is one of the most powerful and least understood principles of learning. See How the Brain Learns (2011), published by Sage.

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Feedback loop ?&55&-,*h-,'!*+2!'49'/*)3-)*@3'(*@'*@&!3*)+*$A*-*('@*)3&(>*&(*)3'*,&(/6*+"4*'##+4)*!3+"5/*(+)*2'*!+*,"%3*)+* impress and retain it, as to connect it with something else already there. “The connecting is the thinking; and, if we attend clearly to the connection, the connected thing will certainly be likely to remain within recall,” he said.12 That’s why Fig (iii) includes a feedback loop from Stage 3 back to Stage 1. Class discussions help build up -(*&()'4(-5&H'/*!:!)',*+#*-!!+%&-)&+(!*`*-*.&(/*+#*;&()'4(-5&H'/*%5+"/_*U*)3-)*!)"/'()!*%-(*)3'(*/4-@*"7+(*@3'(* preparing charts for class.

Comment: The more dissimilar the articles, the harder students have to work to make a connection. That’s why the initial choice of articles for any given class is so crucial. If all the articles are all about entrepreneurship, then the connections are easy to make. Combining articles from different functional areas, different industries and cultures forces students to cross more boundaries, and is therefore much more challenging. However the rewards are often greater.

Student research Y)"/'()!*&(*,:*%-7!)+('*ijI*%+"4!'*a!",,'4*NOQQb*@'4'*'(%+"4->'/*)+*'A75+4'*-*!7'%&$%*&!!"'*+4*E"'!)&+(* in their term papers. Shawnell Carmichael, a former banker, examined power structures; an issue that crops up in a lot of class discussions. Kyle Becker, a former professional poker player, explored the hypothesis that true creativity in business is impossible without risk. Alisabeth Yang wrote a critique of Schumpeter’s theory of creative destruction, with an emphasis on the downside to being disruptive and how best to mitigate this. Andrew Ventura explored the future of cloud computing and its potential impact on corporate culture. Joe Leiman deconstructed the US healthcare industry. Kamran Saljuki investigated why creativity is widely considered the number one quality leaders need to possess, and what this actually means. Sorapy San conducted a comparative analysis of corporate governance models. Emily Laubscher focused on the principles and tools of effective communication. Nawal Mostareeh looked into the role of iteration and learning in start-ups. Andrew Bryant examined Cluster B personality disorders and their effect on organizational culture. Raad Alghamdi analyzed the relationship between corporate governance and risk management.

IV. Bottom-up innovation We are currently developing a Clockwise app. One advantage of the digital format is that it permits greater ['A&2&5&):*-(/*/:(-,&!,0*W+4*'A-,75'6*+('*%-(*,+9'*%+"()'4%5+%.@&!'*-!*@'55*-!*%5+%.@&!'*-(/*,-.'*%+()&("+"!* adjustments.

In addition, we are exploring how technology and social media can be leveraged to enhance the Clockwise method. As the above discussion shows, stages 2 & 3 of the Clockwise protocol rely heavily on class participation.

However, some people are more comfortable publicly expressing their ideas than others. Social media may be 5'9'4->'/*)+*;5'9'5*)3'*75-:&(>*$'5/0_ For real world applications, we’re developing an alternate version called “Clockwise Decision.” This was inspired by Robert Hein’s point that in the real world, thinking is only useful in so far as it produces a concrete result. Business is about execution as well as originality. What’s different about Clockwise Decision is that content is chosen and 74+%'!!'/*@&)3*-*!7'%&$%*2"!&('!!*>+-5*&(*,&(/0*=3&!*&!*,'-()*#+4*"!'*2:*2+-4/!*+#*/&4'%)+4!0*

______ QN**@@@0>")'(2'4>0+4>L$5'!LQRNSTLQRNSTM3LQRNSTM303),**

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V. Clockwise: does it make a difference?

I’m surprised by how students have taken to the Clockwise method. Students in one class were asked to list the top three things they’d learned from a series of Clockwise exercises. I was expecting them to highlight what they’d learned from the FT authors, but several chose to focus on the method itself. Jessica D’Angelo, a PharmD/MBA student wrote: “1. I am used to taking notes while reading, however, having a structure is extremely helpful.

Using this technique cuts out the need for sorting notes after they are taken. When using clockwise charts, I am able to sort my notes as I take them. I plan on utilizing this technique @3'(*1*-,*4'-/&(>*-4)&%5'!*)3-)*1*$(/*/&#$%"5)*)+*"(/'4!)-(/*&(*)3'*#")"4'0 2. I learned that documenting the connections between articles could help me to better understand the articles that I am reading. I have been in school for a while and have read a lot +#*,-)'4&-5*+9'4*)3'*:'-4!6*2")*1*-,*%+()&("-55:*!)4">>5&(>*)+*4'-/*-%)&9'5:0**1*+#)'(*$(/*,:!'5#* reading a page of material and forgetting what it is I actually read. I think this technique will help me to become a more active reader. It may take longer, but it helps the material to stick better.”

Does Clockwise change the way students view the world? Does it teach them to think with an enlarged mentality?

This is increasingly what decision-makers are looking for. “We look for people who are so inquisitive about the world that they’re willing to try to do what you do,” says Tim Brown, CEO of IDEO, the design consultancy. “We %-55*)3',*F=M!3-7'/*7'+75'0e*=3':*3-9'*-*74&(%&7-5*!.&55*)3-)*/'!%4&2'!*)3'*9'4)&%-5*5'>*+#*)3'*=*U*)3':_4'*,'%3-(&%-5* engineers or industrial designers. But they are so empathetic that they can branch out into other skills, such as anthropology, and do them as well. They are able to explore insights from many different perspectives and recognize 7-))'4(!*+#*2'3-9&+4*)3-)*7+&()*)+*-*"(&9'4!-5*3",-(*(''/0*=3-)_!*@3-)*:+"_4'*-#)'4*-)*)3&!*7+&()*U*7-))'4(!*)3-)*:&'5/* ideas.”13 I can prove to students that they’re more ‘T-shaped’ at the end of the course than at the beginning by performing a simple test. I simply ask them to repeat three charts they did at the beginning of the semester, and compare them with the original charts. They are radically different. Students approach the same subject matter with a perspective that’s far wider and deeper than that of the neophyte. They realize that the exercises they once wished to hurry through have a value that only now – having produced and worked over perhaps 70-100 charts – they can fully appreciate.

Ultimately, however, the value of Clockwise will depend on its impact after graduation, and it’s too early to tell. We are in the throws of creating a Clockwise community to track its application in practice.

Further information If you are interested in exploring how Clockwise could add value to your classroom, please contact Giles Jackson on 202 257 4854.

Acknowledgements The author would like to thank to Bob Hein, Paul Erb, Anne Marchant, and his students for their helpful comments.

______ 13 http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/95/design-strategy.html?page=0%2C1

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Appendix: Sample FT summaries (a) ISSUES WHAT DOES ASIA’S RISING CONSUMER CLASS LOOK LIKE? “Until recently, many economists were openly sceptical about the idea that China, or any other emerging Asian economy, could spirit a sizeable consuming class from the mass of poverty at the base of the social pyramid,” write David Pilling, Kathrin Hille and Amy Kazmin. “But that scepticism is beginning to fade. This year could be the one when talk of Asia’s export-led development begins to give way to a realisation that much of the region’s future growth will be self-generated. That could even begin to address the global imbalances resulting from Asia’s export-led model )3-)*3-9'*2''(*-)*)3'*3'-4)*+#*)3'*>5+2-5*$(-(%&-5*%4&!&!0e*h-7-(6*Y+")3*f+4'-6*=-&@-(6*Y&(>-7+4'*-(/*\+(>*f+(>* already enjoy prosperity. Now the seeds of a new consumer class are being planted elsewhere, most obviously in China. According to Dragonomics, a consultancy, about 300m people – 23 per cent of the Chinese population – 3-9'*!&>(&$%-()*/&!%4')&+(-4:*!7'(/&(>*-(/*5&9'*&(*%&)&'!*5-4>'*'(+">3*)+*2'*-%%'!!&25'*2:*2&>*%+,7-(&'!0*I%%+4/&(>* to McKinsey, another consultancy, the middle class is expected to expand from 29 per cent of China’s 190m urban households now to 75 per cent of 372m urban households in 2025. By some estimates, by 2014 retail sales in China may surpass those of the US. Experts say the growth of the middle class and its spending will be much faster in smalltown China than in the biggest cities where many foreign companies have so far concentrated their efforts.

The emergence of an Asian middle class is also seen in India, the world’s second most populous country. Currently, just 30m people pay taxes. But Ireena Vittal, a retail specialist at Mc-Kinsey, says India is like China in 2001, with the whole bell curve of income distribution shifting to the right. India’s 1.2bn people can be divided into roughly 250m households: The bottom 100m live in poverty and have little realistic prospect of attaining middle-class status, whereas only 2m households enjoy the same standard of living as rich counterparts in the US or Europe. Below this, however, there are 14m-15m households with an annual income of $7,000-$10,000 – a number set to explode )+*BO,*3+"!'3+5/!6*+4*NOO,*7'+75'6*@&)3&(*$9'*:'-4!0*=3'!'*3+"!'3+5/!*!7'(/*-*5+@'4*74+7+4)&+(*+#*&(%+,'*+(* #++/6*/'9+)&(>*,+4'*)+*3+"!&(>6*74&9-)'*'/"%-)&+(6*3'-5)3%-4'6*-(/*74+/"%)!*!"%3*-!*,+)+4%:%5'!6*.&)%3'(*$))&(>!6* air conditioners and clothes. As with China, smaller cities such as Ludhiana, Chandigarh, Pune, Coimbatore, I"4-(>-2-/*-(/*Y"4-)*-4'*>4+@&(>*&(*-#["'(%'0 Following in China’s footsteps are Indonesia, a fast-growing nation of 240m; and Vietnam, 85m-strong. Even in less obviously successful economies such as the Philippines, which has a population of nearly 95m, there are pockets +#*24+-/'4*-#["'(%'0*<4+@)3*&!*5&.'5:*)+*2'*-(-',&%*&(*g"4+7'*-(/*7+!!&25:*I,'4&%-*#+4*,-(:*:'-4!*)+*%+,'6*2")* 2"!&('!!'!*#4+,*#++/*)+*&(!"4-(%'*,-:*$(/*)3'*+77+4)"(&):*)3':*(''/*&(*I!&-6*@3'4'9'4*7'+75'*3-9'*4'-%3'/*-* F)34'!3+5/*5'9'5e*+#*&(%+,'*U*)3'*"(74'/&%)-25'*7+&()*-)*@3&%3*%+(!",7)&+(*)-.'!*+##0* CAN AFRICA LEAPFROG TO A BETTER FUTURE? Lord Stern, the I.G. Patel professor of economics and government at the London School of Economics, chair of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, and former director of policy and research for the Commission for Africa, reiterates Robert Zoellick’s point that the futures of the rich world and Africa are ever more closely intertwined. He says the implications of large scale of growth in China and its demand for Africa’s goods were underestimated. China’s industries are moving up the value chain and Africa can become a major source of low-cost manufacturing. Africa will increasingly look east for its markets (China is already its fastest-growing trade partner and has become one of its main donors – providing an estimated $17bn in 2007). He and his colleagues had focused mainly on “traditional” resources such as oil, diamonds and timber, but did not anticipate how strong demand would be for less well known resources, such as coltan and uranium. In hindsight, he says, they should have placed much stronger emphasis on climate change and the environment: “Africa has played a negligible role in the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and its per capita emissions are still far below those of rich countries and most emerging economies. However, climate change is a massive threat to its future growth, development and stability. Some deserts will continue to grow, placing pressure on resources and forcing populations to move elsewhere. African cities – already expanding too rapidly for them to cope – will grow even faster. All this

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change threatens to undermine progress towards peace and security, as it has done already in Darfur. That matters to I#4&%-*$4!)*-(/*#+4',+!)6*2")*%+([&%)*-(/*#-&5'/*!)-)'!*-##'%)*"!*-55e0*=3'*I#4&%-*V4+>4'!!*V-('5*'!)&,-)'!*)3'*%+()&('()* will need up to $20bn more per year in the next few years to adapt to climate change, on top of previous estimates to meet the UN millennium development goals by 2015. Stern thinks that in energy as in telephony, Africa could leapfrog to cleaner solutions, eventually exporting electricity.

HOW IMPORTANT IS INSTINCT? Luke Johnson says that a reliable gut feeling separates winners from losers, and is it the most valuable emotional tool any entrepreneur can possess. “My observations of successful company owners lead me to believe that a highly analytical attitude can be a drawback. At critical junctures in commercial life, risk-taking is more an act of faith than a carefully balanced choice. Frequently, such moments require decisiveness and absolute conviction above all else. There is simply no time to wait for all the facts, or room for doubt. A computer program cannot tell you how to invent and launch a new product. That journey involves too many unknowns, too much luck – and too much sheer &()"&)&+(6*4-)3'4*)3-(*)3'*&(#-55&25'*5+>&%*)3-)*,-%3&('!*/'5&9'4*!+*@'550*I!*83'.3+9*!-&/K*FI(*-4)&!)_!*[-&4*&!*!+,')&,'!* worth a scientist’s brains” – entrepreneurs need right-brain thinking”.

“Never allow quantitative drawbacks to defeat overwhelming qualitative arguments,” he continues, acknowledging that this is exactly what large organizations tend to do. Committees and systems, research and data, checks and balances, and so on, all undermine the sort of novel solutions and bold moves that create unexpected value. But >")*&(!)&(%)*%-((+)*2'*)-">3)*-!*7-4)*+#*-(*ijI6*+4*!')*/+@(*&(*)3'*#+4,"5-0*<")*&(!)&(%)*M*-*.&(/*+#*!&A)3*!'(!'*U* applies not only to go/no-go decisions, but also to personnel issues. The message is clear: Do not get involved with &(/&9&/"-5!*:+"*/&!5&.'*-)*)3'*$4!)*,'')&(>0*^+*(+)*3&4'*)3',6*/+*(+)*>+*&()+*7-4)('4!3&7*@&)3*)3',6*/+*(+)*'A)'(/* them credit, and do not invest in them.

F1()"&)&+(*&!*-)*&)!*,+!)*7+@'4#"5*@3'(*%+,2&('/*@&)3*%+($/'(%'e6*-//!*i40*h+3(!+(0*F1#*:+"*7+!!'!!*)3&!*,&>3):* duo of talents, you can carry others with you, even though you cannot necessarily provide concrete evidence that you are right. If you are to launch projects before others, invent new products or seize opportunities ahead of the pack, you must be willing to act – at least in part – on a hunch”.

What then is the value of experience? Answer: “Experience will teach each of us when to follow our innate G"/>,'()6*-(/*@3'(*)+*%-55*#+4*,+4'*)'%3(&%-5*2-%.M"70*1)*&!*/&#$%"5)*)+*>'('4-5&!'*-2+")*%4'-)&9&):*-(/*&(!&>3)*`*,-(:* of us are born with plenty of imagination, but some work out a method of channelling it in a productive way while others suppress that part of their mind. Unfortunately, visionaries sometimes lack skill at articulating their views and cannot marshal the documents to justify their opinions, so the sceptics master the debate. That is why pioneers so often leave large companies to do it for themselves”.

WHAT’S THE VALUE OF A GOOD MENTOR? The FT’s Emma Jacobs spoke to several business founders about the people whose advice they valued starting out.

Michelle Garnaut, restaurateur, says she’s had many mentors, none of them formal, and “The people who have had the biggest impact on my career have been those who have been inspiring and creative.” They planted ideas in her head, @3&%3*!3'_!*!&(%'*)-.'(*+(*3'4!'5#0**j&H*Y)+('6*=@&))'4_!*%+M#+"(/'46*3-!*)@+*,'()+4!0*F=3'*$4!)*&!*Y)'9'*Y(&/'46*-*>":*1* worked with a long time ago who got me started. I dropped out of university and got a job at Little, Brown publishers, ,+9&(>*2+A'!*#4+,*)3'*>4+"(/*)+*)3'*!'%+(/*[++40*1(*2')@''(*)3'*[++4!*@-!*)3'*-4)*/'7-4),'()0*1*3-/*!)-4)'/*+")* as an artist and was interested in computers. One day when they were out at lunch I snuck on to a computer and designed a book jacket, which I included in their designs. Mr. Snider, the art director, found out it was the “box guy” who had done it and hired me to do book jackets; in return I taught him how to use Macs.” This relationship set in motion the chain of jobs and businesses that ultimately led Stone to start Twitter. “It was better than going to university,” he says. “He’s a great art director and a natural teacher. He taught me how to deal with fragile egos.

We’re still friends.” His other mentor is Evan Williams, his Twitter co-founder, who takes the long view, is accepting of Stone’s “outlandish statements,” and gets to the core of a problem by looking at things from various angles.

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Sahar Hashemi, the founder of Coffee Republic and author of Switched On, says her mother was her mentor, which sounds improbable given that she was a full-time mother and housewife. “But she was very creative and talented and spoke a lot of languages” (her dad, on the other hand, was very much a corporate man). Her father’s death had made her realize that there was no such thing as a comfort zone and that she should really pursue her dreams while she !)&55*3-/*)&,'0*\'4*,",_!*'(%+"4->','()*!"!)-&('/*)3'*['/>5&(>*!)-4)M"7*-!*#4&'(/!*9+&%'/*)3'&4*/+"2)!*-(/*2-(.!* turned them down. “The idea of selling coffee to a tea-drinking nation in the early 1990s was a bit reckless. But when you start a business you have to listen to a lot of doom-mongers, and having someone buy into your dream, like my mother did, was vital. Her belief in me was contagious. She gave me the push that ultimately led me to discover skills -(/*%+($/'(%'*1*/&/(_)*4'-5&!'*1*3-/0e*k+)*'9'4:+('*3-!*!+,'+('*)3':*%-(*!3-4'*)3'&4*&(!'%"4&)&'!*@&)3*-(/*>')*-*7'7* )-5.*@3'(*(''/'/*U*)3-)*'A)4-*'(%+"4->','()*)+*)-.'*-*5'-76*2'*)4"'*)+*:+"4!'5#*-(/*>+*#+4*:+"4*/4'-,!0 HOW ARE SUPPLY CHAINS BECOMING GREENER? Stephen Pritchard writes than in France, Pernod Ricard is now using river barges, rather than trucks, to transport its Mumm and Perrier-Jouet Champagne to Le Havre, where it joins ships bound for Asia and the Americas. In fact, the company tries to use airfreight only as a last resort, aims to reduce the number of miles products travel by road, and also considers the environment in its choice of sea routes. At the same time, products must obviously reach their markets on time and in good condition.

This is no simple task, since champagne must come from the Champagne region of France, whiskies from Scotland, and vodka from Sweden. “To manage this, the company uses eight supply chain IT systems, including enterprise resource planning, business intelligence and sales forecasting. Like many fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) businesses, it is combining advanced planning and forecasting tools to help predict demand – and so limit inventories and optimise transport routes – as well as more obvious “green” measures, such as reducing packaging or using thinner glass for bottles,” says Mr. Pritchard, adding that FMCG brands are among the more responsive to environmental issues because of both consumers’ growing awareness, as well as pressure from supermarkets. =3'*74+25',*&!*)3-)*&)*&!*,"%3*,+4'*/&#$%"5)*)+*)4-%.*&(7")!*!"%3*-!*'('4>:6*@-)'4*-(/*',&!!&+(!*)3-(6*!-:6*3-H-4/+"!* materials. Sustainability experts warn that few manufacturers can account for the exact carbon footprint of an item on the line at any one time, especially if it is made from materials, or with energy, sourced on the open market, -5)3+">3*)3'*,+4'*!+73&!)&%-)'/*,-("#-%)"4&(>*-(/*gdV*!:!)',!*%-(*7+)'()&-55:*/+*)3&!0*g#$%&'()*%+,7-(&'!*U* )3+!'*2"!&('!!'!*)3-)*3-9'*&(9'!)'/*&(*1=*)+*&,74+9'*!'49&%'*+4*/4&9'*/+@(*%+!)!*U*-4'*)3'*+('!*)3-)*3-9'*)++5!* to improving sustainability, say the experts. The next frontier is “reverse logistics” – managing the end of life of a product – as more companies try to reduce post consumer waste. In the meantime, software companies are working on standardisation, so it is easier to exchange environmental data across a supply chain and to trace the eco-footprint of a given bill of materials. Guy Battle, a partner at Deloitte, says that the incentive to adopt new tools will increase as raw material and energy costs rise.

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(b) CASES JACK WILLS l"%&'*<4''('*&(9'!)&>-)'/*!'%4')&9'*%5+)3&(>*24-(/*h-%.*?&55!*aF"(&9'4!&):*+")$))'4!eb*)+*$(/*+")*3+@*&)*3-!*,-(->'/* to create a tribe of loyal teenage followers. “There is something cultish about its fans’ devotion to the brand,” she !-:!0*Fm&!&)*-(:*"7,-4.')*"(&9'4!&):6*2+-4/&(>*!%3++5*+4*4'!+4)*)+@(6*#4+,*g/&(2"4>3*)+*I5/'2"4>36*-(/*)3'*-#["'()* teens will be there, buying Jack Wills’ expensive preppy sports wear (£69 for a hooded sweatshirt and up to £19 for a pair of socks)”.

Jack Wills is one of a number of brands, including the more established US label Abercrombie & Fitch, that target teens with money and sell them preppy or surf-inspired casual clothes. According to LS:NGlobal, a trends consultancy, the teen market in the US is worth £133bn, and £6.8bn in the UK. Privilege is a key selling point.

According to Mat Bickley, founder of retail consultancy Joyn: “Posh is cool again, it’s like the 1980s. If you look at all the celebrity endorsements, the bands, the actors and faces of Burberry even now, they’re all ‘society’ or public school educated”. =3'4'*-4'*BB*h-%.*?&55!*!3+7!*&(*)3'*Xf6*-(/*!'9'4-5*!)+4'!*&(*)3'*XY0*1(*NOQOLNOQQ*h-%.*?&55!*,-/'*-*74+$)*+#* nQT0B,*+(*!-5'!*+#*nPN,6*('-45:*)4&75&(>*&)!*74+$)!*#4+,*)3'*74'9&+"!*:'-40*=3'*%+,7-(:*',75+:!*Q6TOO*7'+75'0* Company history Jack Wills was founded by 36-year-old Peter Williams. Thirteen years ago he graduated from University College, London and became fascinated with setting up his own brand. A visit to the seaside town of Salcombe in Devon was an inspiration. “I’d been once in summer and it really just registered something”, he explains. “When I started thinking about a premium brand I dredged up this vision of what I remembered in Salcombe. I thought, ‘What if you could create a brand that could bottle what being at a British university was all about and all the cool amazing stuff that goes with that?’ It’s such a uniquely cherished part of your life. I thought if you could create a brand that epitomised that it would be very compelling”. ?&55&-,!*G+&('/*#+4%'!*@&)3*d+2'4)*Y3-@6*-*"(&9'4!&):*#4&'(/*)3'(*@+4.&(>*-)*-*,-4.')&(>*$4,6*-(/*)3':*!%4-7'/* together £40,000 of their own capital from savings, credit cards and loans to set up Jack Wills (named after Williams’ grandfather, Jack Williams). Opened in 1999, their Salcombe store sold vintage-inspired T-shirts and sweaters bearing the Jack Wills lettering. They slept above the shop.

They opened a second branch in Fulham, London, in October that same year. “That shop was ram-raided on millennium eve and was shut down soon after but they persevered and opened another store in the Suffolk coastal town of Aldeburgh. Early Jack Wills stores sold good-quality basics. The tweed jackets and more fashion-led items, plus homewares, were much later additions and have become big business only in the past three years. Jack Wills went on to open stores in the smart university towns of Bath, Exeter and Oxford”, says Ms Greene. The founders still own 70 per cent (Williams has the majority) and 27 per cent is held by a private equity company that bought a stake in 2007.

Marketing Jack Wills “We’re a niche premium brand”, explains Williams. “We have no interest in the mass. We’re all about viral. I want the brand to be discovered”. This groundbreaking “non-marketing” strategy happened by chance – they didn’t advertise only because they didn’t have the money to do so. Now the company prides itself on its stealth marketing and its very direct relationship with its consumers. It shuns advertising in favour of social media and organised events.

“Grassroots are at the heart of everything Jack Wills is about, and its attention to its customers – its community – is what sets it apart from other shops selling to teenagers. Its tweeds, vintage hoodies, and print prairie dresses are pleasant but they are not cutting-edge, individual or high fashion. Their sameness reinforces membership of an exclusive friendship group. Events in the real world make the brand, which even sounds like a friend, into a companion for the good times”, explains Ms Greene.

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In March of this year the company hosted three nights of events for 2,000 students in Tignes, in the French Alps. It also sponsors university balls (such as at Keble College, Oxford) and puts on between-season “tours” in university towns, giving away bespoke T-shirts for each town, plus mugs, underpants and other coveted trinkets.

But the Jack Wills’ Varsity Polo is the biggest event in its calendar to date. Next month, teams from Harvard, Yale, Oxford and Cambridge universities, and the public schools Eton and Harrow will play against each other with QO6OOO*#-(!*5++.&(>*+(0*=3'*+#$%&-5*!7+(!+4*&!*h-%.*?&55!0* About 220,000 Facebook and Twitter fans tune in to watch videos of such events. A team monitors followers’ tweets and responds accordingly. Says marketing manager Freddie Wyatt: “We get hundreds of mentions every day on Twitter and we reply to 90 per cent of them. People ask a question and we’ll tweet back an answer along with a video. It’s one-to-one contact”.

But according to Max Reyner, insight editor at LS:NGlobal: “Events are key here and are taking over from social networking, which is still important for awareness but is seen as less cool to teens now, as parents join sites like Facebook. They used to be private spaces. With the events they have a sense of ownership. The fact that Jack Wills doesn’t advertise also helps. Teens like the idea of discovery. The whole feel of Jack Wills is like you’re in a club and you’re shutting out the parents”. The company extracts maximum value from sponsored events with its FY'-!+((-&4'!e*74+>4-,,'0*8++5*-(/*+")>+&(>*F&(["'(%'4!e*-4'*7-&/*)+*-))'(/*7-4)&'!*-(/*%&4%"5-)'*@&)3*>"'!)!6* handing out free merchandise.

Jack Wills also generates buzz for its collections by sending out four catalogues or “handbooks” to a 400,000-strong UK readership, coinciding with school terms. “These books, featuring evocative images of youths gallivanting in the English countryside, have become collectors’ items”, says Ms Greene. They also became a source of controversy after the UK Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) received 19 complaints over some risqué images, including one of -*!+-.&(>*@')*:+"(>*@+,-(6*@'-4&(>*+(5:*-*7-&4*+#*[+4-5*h-%.*?&55!*.(&%.'4!*-(/*2'&(>*',24-%'/*2:*-*,-(*@'-4&(>* only a pair of jeans.

“Williams has so far been able to crystallise the essence of a particular group and sell it back to them to wear at the beach and in the nightclub. And those customers seem very, very happy about it”, says Ms Greene. Says one 15 year-old customer: “I like that Jack Wills feels British. I get the catalogue, everyone in my school does. I love their Facebook page too.” Another says: “I love the catalogues. You want to look like them but it’s not just modelling. They look like they’re having fun”.

Jack Wills’ marketing strategy had to be adapted for the US. “We’re more obvious in the US”, says Wyatt, the marketing director. “We try to push the Britishness because we’re a new brand there. In the UK, it’s more about 4')-&(&(>*)3'*%+4'*-"/&'(%'0*1(*)3'*XY6*&)_!*-2+")*)4:&(>*)+*$(/*-(/*2"&5/*)3-)*)4&2'e0*=34''*:'-4!*2'#+4'*)3'*$4!)*h-%.* Wills store opened in the US, a group of eight cool young boys and girls were paid to hang out and drive around in branded Jack Wills’ Jeeps.

Growth strategy Jack Wills is planning seven more stores in the US this year, and is also expanding into Asia and the Middle East.

Williams is bullish about Jack Wills’ growth prospects, predicting it could become a global “multibillion” pound company. To this end, he appointed two retail experts to his board: former Body Shop chief executive Peter Saunders as chairman, and Rose Marie Bravo as a non-executive director (she was chairman of Saks Fifth Avenue in the 1990s -(/*)"4('/*-4+"(/*)3'*#+4)"('!*+#*j"42'44:b0*FY&>(&$%-()5:6*j+/:*Y3+7*-(/*j"42'44:*-4'*-,+(>*)3'*#'@*j4&)&!3* retailers that have been successful in the US market”, says Ms Greene.

Will Jack Wills endure? According to George Wallace, head of MHE Retail, a retail consultancy, the company has “created a very classy lifestyle brand with a very tribal following. They’ve got quite a narrow position – it’s very public school – but they’ve got that group to buy in to it in a very big way. They’ve created something that persuades 7-4'()!*)+*7-:*74',&",*74&%'!*#+4*4'-!+(-25'*E"-5&):6*-(/*-)*9'4:*3&>3*,-4>&(!0*=3'*@+44:*&!*&#*)3&!*9'4:*$%.5'*>4+"7* falls out of love with them. It’s such a volatile market. If they do, the fall could be spectacular, although I don’t see that happening any time soon”.

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In 2008, the founders launched Aubin & Wills, aimed at graduates of the Jack Wills tribe. There are six Aubin & Wills stores and two in-store concessions, offering a chic, fashion-oriented look. “I don’t think the concept registers as well”, says Mr. Wallace. “The trouble is, when you’re older you don’t want to be part of something in the same way you do as a teen. You’re more mature, you’ve got more options, and you don’t buy in to that fantasy in the same way. You don’t want to be part of a tribe”.

KILFROST ]('M)3&4/*+#*)3'*/'M&%&(>*-(/*-()&M&%&(>*["&/!*)3-)*-&4%4-#)*@+45/@&/'*,"!)*"!'*)+*[:*!-#'5:*&(*%+5/*@'-)3'4*-4'*,-/'*

by Kilfrost, a small, privately owned family business (74 employees) in Northumberland, England, reports Chris Tighe. The company was founded in the early 1930s by Joseph Halbert, a self-taught chemist who developed de&%&(>*)'%3(+5+>:*-#)'4*(+)&%&(>*3+@*!(+@/4+7!*-4'*4'!&!)-()*)+*#4''H&(>0*g-45:*74+/"%)!*4-(>'/*#4+,*-*["&/*)+*/'M&%'* a soccer pitch to a treatment for meat in the early days of refrigeration. In 1937, a defrosting concentrate was trialled +(*Y"(/'45-(/*[:&(>*2+-)!*+#*1,7'4&-5*I&4@-:!6*)+/-:_!*j4&)&!3*I&4@-:!*af&5#4+!)*3-!*!&(%'*('9'4*#-&5'/*)+*!"775:* j4&)&!3*I&4@-:!*@&)3*/'M&%&(>*["&/6*'9'(*/"4&(>*)3'*,+!)*)'!)&(>*)&,'!b0*W"4)3'4*4'!'-4%3*-(/*/'9'5+7,'()*5'/*)+*)3'* 5-"(%3*&(*QPBQ*+#*)3'*@+45/_!*$4!)*>5:%+5M2-!'/*-&4%4-#)*/'M&%&(>*["&/*)3-)*%+"5/*2'*!74-:'/*E"&%.5:6*'#$%&'()5:*-(/* uniformly. Kilfrost still uses the original, simple but eye-catching 1930s company logo. =3&!*:'-4*/'M&%'4*@&55*-%%+"()*#+4*nBS,*+#*-*#+4'%-!)*4'%+4/*nRO,*)"4(+9'40*V4'M)-A*74+$)*&!*'A7'%)'/*)+*4'-%3* about £6m this year. Gary Lydiate, chief executive, describes the trade-secret ingredients that have made Kilfrost a 4'(+@('/*24-(/*@&)3*!-5'!*)+*,+4'*)3-(*CO*%+"()4&'!*&(*$9'*%+()&('()!*-!*F)3'*,->&%*7&A&'*/"!)0e*\-9&(>*!)-4)'/*3&!* career in the military, Lydiate understands the value of logistics and planning, and has a keen interest in meteorology, which is also vital for forward planning in his business. He says the winters are going to be colder for the next few decades, and the oceans are beginning to get colder. “It is wonderful news for Kilfrost,” he says.

Assuming the role in 2006, his job as he saw it was to ready the company for scale – the volumes had got so large it couldn’t keep pace. He set up large storage facilities near the mouth of the River Tyne for monopropylene glycol (this vital constituent must be imported from Rotterdam in 2,000-tonne shipments). This enables the company to increase output very quickly when needed (the call for de-icer at big airports can go from nothing to 500 tonnes a day). He has also boosted Kilfrost’s blending and storage capacity in mainland Europe, and it has manufacturing plants in continental Europe, the US and Japan. Distribution is outsourced. The “magic pixie dust” and R&D continue to be 3-(/5'/*-)*)3'*%+,7-(:*\o0*g,75+:&(>*'&>3)*V3^M5'9'5*!%&'()&!)!6*&)*3-!*/'9'5+7'/*)3'*@+45/_!*$4!)*/'M&%&(>*["&/* based on glycol from a sustainable source, corn sugar, in conjunction with DuPont Tate & Lyle BioProducts. The %+,7-(:*4'%'()5:*5-"(%3'/*&)!*$4!)*74+/"%)*#+4*%+(!",'4!6*1%'*i'5)6*-!*@'55*-*('@*4-(>'6*=/&%'6*#+4*4-&5*4+55&(>*!)+%.6* and more applications are forthcoming. Says Mr. Lydiate: “We’re a small group of people, we are a team. Everybody 3'4'*&!*4'!7+(!&25'p*)3'4'*&!*(+*3&/&(>*75-%'0*?'*,-(->'*)+*.''7*)3'*7"25&%*[:&(>0*]"4*'()&4'*#+%"!*&!*+(*/+&(>*@3-)* we say on the tin.”

ZAPPOS Tony Hsieh became a multimillionaire at 24 when he sold a start-up he had co-founded to Microsoft for $265m. \'*$4!)*>+)*&(9+59'/*@&)3*q-77+!6*)3'*+(5&('*!3+'*4')-&5'46*-!*-(*-/9&!'4*-(/*&(9'!)+4*-(/*'9'()"-55:*2'%-,'*%3&'#* 'A'%")&9'0*\'*!')*)@+*>+-5!*#+4*)3'*$4!)*QO*:'-4!K*>4+@*-(("-5*!-5'!*#4+,*rQ0R,*)+*rQ2(6*-(/*>')*+(*)3'*5&!)*+#*2'!)* companies to work for.

Mr. Hsieh viewed culture building as an investment that would result in a high-energy workplace. Ten core values @'4'*/'9'5+7'/*+(*@3&%3*q-77+!*3&4'/*-(/*$4'/0*=3'4'*-4'*75-:#"5*+('!*!"%3*-!*F%4'-)'*#"(*-(/*-*5&))5'*@'&4/('!!e6* but also performance-driven ones such as “do more with less”, and “deliver ‘wow’ through service”. q-77+!*',75+:'/*"("!"-5*4'%4"&),'()*74+%'!!*&(9+59&(>*)@+*&()'49&'@!*`*+('*)+*-!!'!!*$)*@&)3*)3'*G+2*-(/*-(+)3'4* )+*-!!'!!*%"5)"4-5*$)*@&)3*)3'*%+,7-(:0*I55*!"%%'!!#"5*4'%4"&)!*3-/*)3'*!-,'*$9'M@''.*)4-&(&(>6*&(%5"/&(>*)@+*@''.!* on the phones in the call-centre. Zappos set itself apart with its free-call number, free shipping and returns, 365day return policy and 24/7 availability. Zappos employees had no scripts or call-time metrics, and were empowered

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to take action to make customers happy. Customer service calls could take an hour, but that was considered a marketing expense because customers who had a good experience with Zappos would tell friends.

Initially, Zappos relied on a “drop-ship” model, whereby shoes were sent to the customer directly on receipt of information from Zappos, but orders were too often delayed or lost, so Mr. Hsieh switched to an inventory model and invested in a distribution facility.

Another central tenet was transparency in dealing with employees, suppliers, investors and customers. Zappos built collaborative partnerships and shared information with vendors in an open and transparent way. Because vendors @'4'*-25'*)+*!''*&(9'()+4:*5'9'5!6*!-5'!*-(/*74+$)-2&5&):6*)3':*@'4'*2'))'4*-25'*)+*3'57*q-77+!*75-(*&)!*2"!&('!!*-(/* made sure they had the right product at the right time. In late 2008, Zappos shed 8 per cent of its workforce and Mr. Hsieh sent a detailed e-mail to staff on what was happening and why, and put the e-mail on his blog so even outsiders had access to the details.

The company hit its goal of $1bn in gross sales in 2008, less than a decade after Mr. Hsieh came on board. In 2009 Fortune magazine ranked Zappos 23rd on its list of the best companies to work for. Now Zappos has expanded into clothes and other categories where customer service could be a differentiator. In late 2009 Zappos was sold to Amazon for $1.2bn, but still operates as an independent entity with its brand and culture intact.

Winter Nie, professor of operations and service management and a researcher at IMD, and Beverley Lennox, a researcher, spelled out the lessons. “The combination of corporate culture, customer service and supply chain make Zappos stand apart. The organisation lives and breathes customer service, which stems from its unique corporate culture. Zappos understands it must recruit people who can deliver customer service. As well taking care to hire the right employees, it provides every recruit with the same basic training. It not only focuses on customer experience at )3'*#4+()*'(/6*2")*/'5&9'4!*&)!*74+,&!'*#4+,*)3'*2-%.*'(/0*1)*%3-(>'/*&)!*2"!&('!!*,+/'5*#4+,*-!!')M5&>3)*)+*$A'/M-!!')* investment to deliver its promised “wow” experience”.

SWAROVSKI 834&!*j4:-()*74+$5'!*i-4."!*l-(>'!MY@-4+9!.&6*)3'*JCM:'-4M+5/*>4'-)M>4'-)*>4-(/!+(*+#*)3'*#+"(/'4*+#*Y@-4+9!.&6* the world’s leading manufacturer of precision-cut crystals (€2.25bn in revenues last year). He says: “I believe that crystal has the capability of becoming very personal and can even create a kind of animistic relationship - it almost 2'%+,'!*-*#')&!3*+2G'%)*#+4*-*7-4)&%"5-4*!&)"-)&+(0*Y+,')3&(>*@3&%3*!3&('!*-(/*!7-4.5'!*/+'!(_)*3-9'*)+*2'*!"7'4$%&-50* It should have substance - that’s why I appreciate the whole concept of the decadence period in 19th-century literature”. He believes in the idea of the dilettante: “It means you are curious in a lot of different directions”. He is not CEO, as there is no CEO. The company has an eight-member executive board, more than 60 family shareholders and a supervisory board of six family members that signs off on every big strategic decision. In his words: “A family business combines a capitalistic approach, the business, with a socialistic approach, the family”. Productive discourse guarantees a quality decision. From this point of view, it’s easy to see why founders stock their boards with people they really .(+@*-(/*)4"!)U7'+75'*@&)3*@3+,*)3':*%-(*!3-4'*7+@'4*-(/*@3+*-4'*,+4'*5&.'5:*)+*!7'-.*)3'*)4")30**I5!+6*#-,&5:* +@('4!3&7*,'-(!*$(-(%&-5*-")+(+,:6*@3&%3*F3'57!*"!*&(*%3-55'(>&(>*)&,'!*)+*,-.'*)3'*4&>3)*/'%&!&+(!*)+*&(["'(%'* our medium and longer-term success as a company. The idea is to retain this autonomy, which means an IPO is not really an option”.

Until the 1970s, the company focused solely on loose crystals, but the oil crisis forced it to diversify into consumer goods, which now make up about 50 per cent of revenues. There are 350,000 members of the company’s Crystal Society. Here, price is not the only creator of value, says Langes-Swarovski. “The value derives from the story that is linked to it”. But when competitors are offering products of comparable quality at 10 times the price, it’s harder to make that case, and thus the company is diversifying again. You’ve got to adapt to survive.

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(c) BIOS MICKEY DREXLER Jonathan Birchall talked to Millard “Mickey” Drexler (66), chief executive of J. Crew and chairman of Apple’s board.

Drexler was raised in a grim apartment building in New York’s Bronx, and started his career as a buyer. J. Crew, the 4')-&5'4*+#*74'77:*%5+)3&(>*#+4*-#["'()*I,'4&%-(!6*3-!*NJO*!)+4'!6*-(/*i40!*]2-,-*&!*-*#-(0*1(*-(*&(/"!)4:*@3'4'* business success depends increasingly on demand-forecasting software and algorithms to determine when and by how much to cut the price of a slow-moving item, Mr. Drexler relies on his own mechanism, an internal switch that >+'!*+(*@3'(*)3'*>++/!*5++.*>++/0*=3&!*&()"&)&+(*@-!*!3-7'/*2+)3*2:*3&!*!"%%'!!'!*-(/*#-&5"4'!*&(*)3'*$%.5'*@+45/* +#*#-!3&+(0*1(*NOON*3'*@-!*$4'/*-!*%3&'#*'A'%")&9'*+#*<-76*)3'*@+45/_!*5-4>'!)*!7'%&-5&):*%5+)3&(>*4')-&5'46*#+4*,-.&(>*-* sales slump worse. He cashed in his stake for about $350m.

Drexler has earned a reputation for being obsessed with the detail of clothing design, takes an unusually hands-on approach to management (he uses his cell phone to connect to the public address system at J. Crew’s New York headquarters, updating his staff on travel plans and creative thoughts etc) and regularly replies directly to customer’s e-mails and phone calls, to stay in touch with his shoppers). When he interviews job candidates, he looks for “hungry 3&>3M'('4>:*7'+75'6e*(+)*-%-/',&%*%4'/'()&-5!6*-(/*3'*&/'()&$'!*@&)3*7'+75'*@3+*3-9'*>4+@(*"7*&(*)3'*!-,'*.&(/!* of environments he grew up in. Candidates who have worked as waiters also do well because they understand customer service.

JEFF SPRECHER Jeff Sprecher (55), chief executive of Intercontinental Exchange, the US’s second biggest futures exchange group, says he learnt in his 20s that it was easier to borrow $50m through a junk-bond offering for a good (potentially scalable/ 74+$)-25'b*&/'-*)3-(*&)*@-!*)+*2+44+@*-*,"%3*!,-55'4*,+(':*#+4*!+,')3&(>*)4-/&)&+(-5*5&.'*-*3+,'0*=3"!*-5@-:!*-!.!* enterpreneurs if their proposal could become a big business.

Mr. Sprecher’s competitors have been increasingly forced to take him seriously, as he has shown himself able to 2'-)*)3',*-)*)3'&4*+@(*>-,'0*8+,&(>*#4+,*+")!&/'*)3'*$(-(%'*&(/"!)4:6*3'*@-!*-25'*/+*)3&(>!*)3-)*-(*&(!&/'4*%+"5/* not. He believes that while great ideas are important, good employees are critical to implementing them. “You have to give decision-making to people and trust them,” he says. “You also have to allow them to fail. Part of being an entrepreneur and a risk-taker is having failure. I don’t have to be a good manager. I just have to be a good hirer of other entrepreneurs.” ?3'(*'()4'74'('"4!*-774+-%3*18g*)+*&(9'!)*&(*+4*2":*)3',*)3':*@&55*/',-(/*3'*!&>(*%+($/'()&-5&):*+4*(+(M%+,7')'* agreements, thinking the business idea is all that matters. He says: “Businesses are not just ideas, they’re people who can execute those ideas.” He also thinks it’s a mistake to demand 51 per cent ownership: “To be in control, you don’t need 51 per cent. You need to be a person who has vision and provides leadership” (he handed over 80 per cent of ICE’s equity when it started).

Like Andy Grove of Intel, he believes that only the paranoid survive. He says “We still feel like we’re on the mountain [but] at higher altitudes, and the environment is much harsher.”

DAN AMOS g,,-*h-%+2!*)-5.'/*)+*^-(*I,+!6*8g]*-(/*%3-&4,-(*+#*I[-%6*@3+*@-!*-77+&()'/*%3&'#*'A'%")&9'*-)*)3'*->'* of 39 following the death of his uncle. Revenues grew under Mr. Amos’s tenure from $2.7bn to $18.3bn, helped 2:*74+/"%)*/&9'4!&$%-)&+(*a#4+,*Q*74+/"%)*)+*QNb*-(/*-(*-/9'4)&!&(>*%-,7-&>(*!)-44&(>*-*)-5.&(>*/"%.0*=3'*/"%.* commercials increased name recognition from less than 10 per cent to over 94 per cent today. He describes his main job as creating shareholder value, and his three best features as not overcomplicating things, the ability to block out distractions and persistence. The downsides of being publicly listed are the challenges of juggling the demands of institutional and retail investors while maintaining a long-term strategy for the company. The upside is knowing you

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have helped investors and employees. The book that had the most impact on his career is What They Don’t Teach You At Harvard Business School by Mark McCormack. The lessons about dealing with people have stuck. “Every business &!*-2+")*4'5-)&+(!3&7!0e\'*4"(!*I[-%*-(/*3&!*5&#'*2-!'/*+(*)3'*)34''*74&(%&75'!*+#*4&!.*,-(->','()K*F('9'4*4&!.*-*5+)* for little; never risk more than you can afford to lose; and consider the odds.”

TAMARA MELLON Tamara Mellon (43), founder of Jimmy Choo (115 stores in 32 countries, now valued at close to £500m) lunched with Vanessa Friedman at the Four Seasons, New York. Mellon recently received her OBE from the Queen for services to British fashion. She started Jimmy Choo with $150,000 from her father, Vidal Sassoon cofounder Tommy Yeardye. In 2001 they bought out Jimmy Choo, whose dream (nice shoes for a few nice women) had diverged from hers (global domination led by fashion-hungry trend-setters). She and her father then sold a 51 per cent stake +#*)3'*%+,7-(:*)+*74&9-)'*'E"&):*$4,*V3+'(&A*gE"&):*V-4)('4!6*@3+*3'5/*+(*)+*&)*"()&5*NOOB6*@3'(*)3':*!+5/*&)*)+* Lion Capital, who held on to it for three years before selling to TowerBrook (she has 17 per cent). TowerBrook is in )3'*,&/!)*+#*-*F!)4-)'>&%*'9-5"-)&+(e*-(/*)4:&(>*)+*/'%&/'*@3')3'4*)+*-(+)3'4*74&9-)'*'E"&):*$4,6*)-.'*h&,,:*83++* public, or hold on to the brand. In the meantime she’s looking ahead. “I think it takes 30 years to build a luxury brand,” she says, “so we’re part-way through. And there’s so much I want to do. I think we can become a lifestyle brand, because one thing doing the collaboration last year with [high-street retail chain] H&M showed us was that consumers would accept any product from us: we did men’s wear, we did women’s wear, we did jewellery. And I want to do all of that.”

Her father taught her to trust her instincts. “I think that’s my biggest strength,” she says. “People who are overeducated become risk-averse.” (She did not go to university). “Money guys can look back at what you’ve sold and come up with a plan for future growth,” she explains, “but they can’t pick the product that will put the numbers on the paper. I can do that, and my job is to make them understand that.” This is hard, however, and in retrospect she @&!3'!*!3'*3-/*2''(*,:*+@(*74&9-)'*'E"&):*$4,*-(/*G"!)*>+('*)+*)3'*2-(.*-(/*-!.'/*)3',*)+*5'(/*3'4*)3'*,+(':* she needed.

LEONARD LAUDER Vanessa Friedman had lunch with Leonard Lauder (77), who has made billions over the last 50 years, turning the business his mother started into one of the world’s top beauty companies, of which he is the biggest shareholder. At $4!)6*!'55&(>*)+*-!7&4-)&+(-5*XY*@+,'(*@-!*!&,75'*U*)3'4'*@'4'*('@*!"2"42-(*,-55!*+7'(&(>*"7*'9'4:*/-:*&(*)3'* 1960s. Then Lauder went international, establishing the UK as a beachhead. People told him the English were too cheap, but he saw a huge transformation between 1953 and 1957 (when he returned with the navy), and knew they were wrong. The lesson: If you have a good idea, don’t let anyone talk you out of it. He repeated the formula in the USSR in 1989 and China in 1993. \'*!-:!*3'_/*7-:*)+*/+*@3-)*3'_!*/+&(>6*2'%-"!'*)3&!*&!*)3'*,+!)*&()'4'!)&(>*)&,'*+#*-55*&(*)3'*2"!&('!!*U*&)_!*,"5)&M ethnic, multi-brand (lauder has 29), multi-dimensional, multi-country (Lauder’s in 140). Friedman asked him how he would describe his current position now that his son has taken over as chairman, and he replied “moral centre,” adding that there’s nothing wrong with being paternalistic. “You are only as successful as the people who work for :+"*@-()*:+"*)+*2'6e*3'*!-:!0*\'*-5!+*/'!%4&2'!*3&,!'5#*-!*F%3&'#*)'-%3&(>*+#$%'4e6*7-!!&(>*+(*(">>')!*+#*@&!/+,* he has honed over time. He holds various classes for employees on subjects such as what went right with other %+,7-(&'!6*-(/*@3-)*@'()*@4+(>0*=3'*$4!)*)3&(>*3'*/+'!*&(*)3&!*!',&(-4*&!*7"55*74+/"%)!*+")*+#*-*7-7'4*2->6*!"%3* Chanel No 5, Clinique, Ritz crackers, Nabisco or Coke. Then he asks the class what the products have in common.

The answer is: “They didn’t monkey with their logo or their colour code.” But the absolutely most important thing if you are a luxury brand is controlled distribution. The brand must own the customer, not the retailer. But the customer is changing. “The balance of power in this nation has shifted between big business and the consumer,” he says. “The era of celebrity is leaving us, and the awe of the rich and famous is leaving us. What is emerging is the smart shopper, -(/*)3'*&/'-*+#*%+%++(&(>6*24+-/5:*/'$('/0e*

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MO IBRAHIM Emma Jacobs talked to Mo Ibrahim, the entrepreneur and philanthropist who moved to the UK from Sudan in 1974.

He took a punt on the potential of mobile phones to transform Africa, and in 2005 sold his company Celtel, making him $2bn richer. The Mo Ibrahim Foundation offers an award for Achievement in African Leadership, giving a prize of $5m to former leaders who promoted good governance, produces a yearly governance report on African countries, and in general provides a forum for a coherent African voice on political and economic development. Those he most admires in business are African women entrepreneurs, which he calls the pillars of society and economy. What the west can learn from them is that small really can be beautiful. But business is also the source of all corruption. Hence his golden rule: “Whatever you do catches up with you.” Also, people should confess to failure (his father taught him to talk straight).

GEORGE BUCKLEY Originally from Yorkshire, England, George Buckley has run 3M since 2005, writes Hal Weitzman. The company has a stable of 55,000 products, including highly complex electronic components widely used in touchscreen mobile phones and tablets, but it is best known for making Scotch tape, Post-it notes and scouring sponges - simple ideas that have become ubiquitous and carry the 3M brand all round the world. “In the end, we’re in business to make money, not to make Post-it notes”, says Buckley, “but it’s a wonderful way to make money.” Unlike his predecessor, Jim McNerney (now chief executive of Boeing), Buckley is an engineer by training. Whereas McNerney %+(%'()4-)'/*+(*%+!)M%"))&(>*-(/*'#$%&'()*,-(->','()6*j"%.5':*3-!*4'#+%"!'/*)3'*%+,7-(:*+(*!%&'(%'*-(/* innovation. Indeed, he calls 3M the only great broad-based science company left in the world.

Also unlike the privileged Mr. McNerney, Mr. Buckley grew up poor, living with his severely disabled grandmother after his parents abandoned him at four months. When she became unable to look after him, a kindly lodger informally adopted him, but she died when he was eight, leaving him in the care of her husband, a steelworker. As a child, he suffered from kidney disease, anaemia and chronic bronchitis, and had a large cyst behind his knee, and 5'#)*-*!%3++5*#+4*73:!&%-55:*3-(/&%-77'/*%3&5/4'(*->'/*QC*@&)3*(+*E"-5&$%-)&+(!0*d'-5&!&(>*)3-)*@&)3+")*'/"%-)&+(* he’d be stupid the rest of his life, he eventually earned a doctorate in electrical and electronic engineering. His $4!)*!'(&+4*,-(->','()*G+2*@-!*@+4.&(>*#+4*j4&)&!3*d-&56*2")*3'*5'#)*)3'*Xf*#+4*)3'*XY*&(*QPPJ6*-))4-%)'/*2:*)3'* opportunities it offered. “Everything seemed to be bigger, better, faster, more complicated and more impressive”, he says. “I wanted a part of that, to see if I could live, survive and succeed in that world”.

At Emerson Electric he worked under Charles Knight, the tough CEO who ran the manufacturing company for 27 years. Says Buckley: “The two best things I did in my career were joining Emerson and leaving Emerson. It was )3'*"5)&,-)'*2"!&('!!*$(&!3&(>*!%3++50*m'4:*/&##'4'()*#4+,*j4&)&!3*d-&56*@3&%3*@-!*>'()5'*-(/*7+5&)'0*?+4.&(>*#+4* Chuck Knight was like working for Genghis Khan”. Under Buckley’s leadership the proportion of revenue from new 74+/"%)!*a)3+!'*&()4+/"%'/*@&)3&(*)3'*7-!)*$9'*:'-4!b*3-!*,+4'*)3-(*/+"25'/*)+*JQ*7'4*%'()*+#*)+)-5*4'9'("'!0*Ji_!* net income was $4.1bn last year on $26.7bn of sales, up from $3.2bn in 2009.

“Long before Google adopted the idea”, explains Weitzman, “3M allowed its employees to devote 15 per cent of their time at work to their own private research, whether in the labs or in “Tech Clubs” – employee groups that bring )+>')3'4*!)-##*-%4+!!*/&##'4'()*/&9&!&+(!*)+*/&!%"!!*&!!"'!*+#*%+,,+(*&()'4'!)0*V+!)M&)*(+)'!*@'4'*$4!)*/'9'5+7'/*&(*-* Tech Club”. Last year 10,000 meetings were convened, up from 1,800 when Buckley took over. He says that the 15 7'4*%'()*&!(_)*&,7+4)-()*U*&)_!*-2+")*)3'*'5','()*+#*#4''/+,K*F1(*-*%4'-)&9'*!+%&'):6*:+"*3-9'*)+*-55+@*7'+75'*%3+&%'0* If you have an overregulated society, you won’t get people to think out of the box and to take the risk to throw away an old idea and substitute it with a new idea which is better”. In this context leadership is more important than management. The former is about ideas and principles that encourage as much variability as possible; whereas the latter is about processes (such as Six Sigma) which minimize variability. Such processes are good for manufacturing, but not for labs, which is why Buckley scrapped their use in labs.

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